Nov. 22, 2024
By Nadan Hadzic
As businesses across the logistics sector enter the final stretch of what has been a dynamic 2024 amid global challenges, we begin our Looking Ahead to 2025 series by assessing the state of play in the North American market, which accounts for around 23% of the global market share, making it the second largest market in the world after APAC.
After organisations eagerly awaited the outcome of the US presidential election, the potential impact of the incoming Trump administration on the logistics sector is enormous.
One of the hallmarks of the previous Trump term was the introduction of heavy tariffs on foreign imports – these measures will almost certainly be replicated and even intensified, with Trump vowing to impose tariffs of up to 20% on all imports and at least 60% on imports from China. The trade war which ensued between USA and China following previous tariffs has continued to affect global supply chains, so the threat of new measures has created cause for concern within the sector.
Perhaps the more immediate question for the sector will be around prospects for the economy and the labour market. During the previous Trump term, unemployment declined to as low as 3.7% in 2019, and if the administration’s handling of the economy in turn enables a boost to consumer confidence, the logistics sector will undoubtedly thrive.
From engaging with our network of senior leaders across the sector in North America, the prevailing sentiment is that highways projects are anticipated to emerge at the top of the priorities list under the new administration. This is partly guided by their experience from the previous Trump term, but also an understanding that the potential challenges that new tariffs would bring to international trade leave no option but to prioritise domestic infrastructure.
Whilst businesses now have the certainty of knowing who will be leading the world’s largest economy, 2025 will unquestionably bring its own challenges to the logistics market and will bring a demand for leaders who are able to navigate through an unpredictable landscape. What we are observing among our client base in the sector is a clearly defined need to bolster their leadership capability by appointing high calibre external talent with the resilience and experience to bridge this gap.