This report is based on a set of 14 polls designed to help understand the business community’s sentiment toward tariffs.
In the first 100 days of his second term, Donald Trump upended eight decades of global trade rules by imposing a 10% global baseline and "reciprocal" tariff framework, plus sizeable tariffs on strategic sectors. These measures disrupted global supply chains, created significant uncertainty for businesses, and eroded consumer confidence. November was another big month for tariff developments, most notably the US Supreme Court’s first oral hearing in the case assessing the legality of Trump’s most sweeping tariffs waged under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). A majority of the nine justices expressed deep reservations on whether the IEEPA grants the President authority to enact such sweeping tariffs, with a decision possible by year-end. If struck down, Trump will use other tariff authorities (like Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act and Section 338 of the 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act) to impose similar measures. However, he will increasingly carve out exemptions for consumer staples from US tariffs amid rising voter concerns about living costs. This pressure has already driven mid-November cuts to US tariffs on food imports like bananas, coffee, and beef, with further reductions likely with the midterm elections less than a year away.
In the first 100 days of his second term, Donald Trump upended eight decades of global trade rules by imposing a 10% global baseline and "reciprocal" tariff framework, plus sizeable tariffs on strategic sectors. These measures disrupted global supply chains, created significant uncertainty for businesses, and eroded consumer confidence. November was another big month for tariff developments, most notably the US Supreme Court’s first oral hearing in the case assessing the legality of Trump’s most sweeping tariffs waged under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). A majority of the nine justices expressed deep reservations on whether the IEEPA grants the President authority to enact such sweeping tariffs, with a decision possible by year-end. If struck down, Trump will use other tariff authorities (like Section 122 of the 1974 Trade Act and Section 338 of the 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act) to impose similar measures. However, he will increasingly carve out exemptions for consumer staples from US tariffs amid rising voter concerns about living costs. This pressure has already driven mid-November cuts to US tariffs on food imports like bananas, coffee, and beef, with further reductions likely with the midterm elections less than a year away.
Report Scope
- The analyst is running 14 polls on its Verdict and Business Trade Media International networks of B2B websites. The polls are still live at the time of writing, but this report analyzes data captured between April 10 and November 30, 2025. In total, the 14 polls received 17,872 responses. We have categorized the poll questions into four distinct groups for our analysis: concerns and challenges, business outlook, pricing, and investment and procurement.
Reasons to Buy
- This survey gives a unique insight into the business community's views on tariffs. It provides an early insight into their level of concern about the impact of tariffs on their business and a view of how tariffs are expected to impact the economic outlook over the next 12 months.
Table of Contents
- About Our Tariffs Sentiment Polls
- Executive Summary
- Poll Analysis
- Sentiment Polling Methodology
- Further Reading
- Report Authors
- Thematic Research Methodology
