While some businesses are panicked about the high prices that could result from the steep tariffs President Trump imposed on virtually all nations, several U.S. industries welcome the new levies.
Beer brewers, steel and aluminum companies, shrimpers, and construction and heavy machine manufacturers all stand to benefit. Each of those industries has been hurt by a flood of cheap imports and is eager for more tariffs to raise prices on overseas competitors.
Shrimp
Shrimpers and shrimp associations hailed the tariffs as a critical lifeline for an industry that has been battered by foreign competition.
Roughly 96% of all the shrimp eaten in America is imported from countries such as India, Indonesia and Ecuador, as the cost of raising shrimp in a pond overseas is considerably cheaper than outfitting a shrimp boat with paid workers, fuel and other necessities in the U.S.
The cheaper imports had faced no import tariffs, undercutting the U.S. shrimp industry. As a result, U.S. shrimpers have lost nearly 50% of the market value and forced many shrimping businesses to close, according to data from the Southern Shrimp Alliance.
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In 2000, Texas had more than 2,500 licensed commercial shrimpers along its Gulf Coast. There are now fewer than 1,000. In Alabama, there were 1,423 licensed commercial shrimp holders in 1995. That was down to 407 last year.
Since 2021, several countries, including Ecuador, have doubled their shrimp exports to the United States. Under Mr. Trump’s tariff plan, Ecuador was hit with a 10% levy on its goods.
John Williams, executive director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance, said his organization is “grateful” for Mr. Trump’s tariffs. He said it will “preserve American jobs, food security and our commitment to ethical production.”
“We’ve watched as multigenerational family businesses tie up their boats, unable to compete with foreign producers who play by a completely different set of rules,” Mr. Williams said.
Beer
American beer companies such as Anheuser-Busch could benefit from the tariffs imposed on beers imported from Mexico, Canada and Germany. If the price of imported beers increases, more Americans may switch to less expensive American brands.
Anheuser-Busch, which makes Budweiser and Michelob, has more than 100 brewing facilities across 24 states and buys more than $700 million in ingredients from American farmers each year, according to the company.
Nearly all of the beer the company sells in the U.S. is made in America, giving it a distinct advantage over foreign competitors such as Corona, which is made in Mexico, and Molson Coors, which is partly headquartered in Canada.
“Most of our beer is sourced, brewed and consumed locally, so any exposure to tariff is very limited,” Anheuser-Busch CEO Fernando Tennenbaum told Yahoo Finance in February.
Heavy machinery
Companies with strong U.S.-based production facilities such as heavy machine manufacturers Caterpillar Inc. and John Deere are expected to see a competitive advantage as higher import costs make American-made goods more attractive.
Caterpillar CEO Jim Umpleby told investors during an earnings call that his company is well-positioned to withstand the tariffs because most of its manufacturing is in the U.S.
“Our largest manufacturing presence is in the United States and we are a net exporter outside of the U.S. That positions us pretty well against many of the companies out there,” he said.
The company is the largest U.S. equipment manufacturer in the U.S. with 60 primary manufacturing locations scattered across 25 states.
Meanwhile, John Deere said more than 75% of the equipment it sells is made in the U.S. and it exports more equipment from America than it imports.
Josh Beal, the company’s director for investor relations, said during an investor conference call that about 10% of components for its machinery and 1% comes from Canada, positioning the company to withstand the hit of tariffs. Mr. Beal also said the higher tariffs on imports from China will be “immaterial” on its costs because less than 2% of its components are sourced from the country.
Aluminum and steel
America’s steel and aluminum companies have long argued that foreign rivals underprice them because they benefit from subsidies and other support from their governments. They say tariffs will raise prices, driving consumers to American products.
Steel and aluminum were not part of Mr. Trump’s reciprocal tariffs announced Tuesday because last month he levied a 25% tariff across the board on the products.
Philip K. Bell, president of the Steel Manufacturers Association, said since the tariffs were imposed, the industry has created more jobs and led to investments of roughly $20 billion in the domestic steel industry.
“President Trump is a champion of the domestic steel industry and his America First Trade Policy is designed to fight the unfair trade that has harmed American workers and weakened manufacturing in the United States,” Mr. Bell said in a statement.
Since the revised tariffs took effect, Hyundai Steel, a Japanese company, announced it would invest $5.8 billion in a steel mill in Louisiana.
