Exporters, 'convinced' that Trump will 'relax,' confident of maintaining sales to US in 2025

Business association Amec, which represents international-facing industrial firms, are confident they will maintain export sales to the US in 2025, despite Trump’s tariff plan, as they are “convinced” that the US president will “relax”.

Joan Tristany, president of the association, made a “less pessimistic and apocalyptic” reading of the geopolitical context and called for “prudence,” while speaking at the presentation of the annual economic report.

Of the total foreign sales in 2024, just over one tenth - 10.6% - went to the United States.

Tristany assured that the companies they represent are “robust” and have the capacity to adapt to “complex and changing environments,” as they did with Brexit or during the pandemic.

“The rules have changed" to a world with more "blocks," Tristany described, who said “our greatest danger is not tariffs, it is unpredictability.”

The economic report presented on Tuesday shows that the North American market was the second biggest exports market in 2024, behind only France. Tristany reiterated that it is a “very important” market but urged for calm: “The world does not end there."

The US tariffs were the focus of a large part of the questions at the press conference, and Tristany admitted that there was a “problem” with the operations that were underway, deals with contracts already signed, because there had been a “sudden change” in the rules, but he reiterated that the “majority” of companies and sectors “will be able to continue selling” in the country.

Many of the companies will already have subsidiaries set up in America, while others will apply different “strategies” depending on their situation and their product.

Asked about the EU’s proposed tariffs, Tristany said that they are a “negotiation measure.” He noted that it will be worth seeing how the situation evolves “over the coming weeks and months” and recalled that Trump’s plan is generalized and affects all countries.

Exports increase by 5.43% in 2024

Beyond the US, the economic report indicates that Amec companies increased sales abroad by 5.43% last year compared to 2023.

France was the main market with 15.1% of the total exports, followed by the US and with Portugal in third place (7.6%), followed by Italy (6.2%) and Germany (6%).

If we look at the year-on-year growth, those observed in the Maghreb (+7.9%), Asia (+4.5%), and the Middle East (+3.2%) stood out.

This year, the association increases the percentage of sales growth to 11.44% and maintains the US as a “strategic destination.” Tristany identified China, Italy, Germany, and the United States as their main competitors.

The document also points out that last year, 94.3% of companies faced “difficulties” in developing their activity abroad, especially due to “uncertainty” and “instability” in the markets. 84.1% of companies say they have implemented some environmental sustainability measure, while 92% consider business collaboration “critical” to develop their activity.