After new Trump tariffs, manufacturers in Charlotte say they need stability
A manufacturing tour visiting Siemens Energy’s Charlotte hub Monday praised “tax certainty” from Washington even as a fresh round of tariff increases threatens to inject new uncertainty into the sector.
The visit, part of the National Association of Manufacturers’ 2026 State of Manufacturing Tour, came just days after President Donald Trump announced plans over the weekend to raise global tariffs to 15%. NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons joined Siemens Energy leaders at the southwest Charlotte hub, where the group highlighted manufacturing investments, workforce expansion and the benefits they say stem from the passing of Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Earlier in the day they held a roundtable with Rep. Tim Moore and a senior official from U.S. Department of the Treasury.
But the visit came amid renewed uncertainty over tariff policy after Trump’s weekend announcement of higher global tariffs, which followed the Supreme Court’s rejection of the legal basis for aspects of his earlier tariffs.
Tariffs, taxes on imported goods, can increase costs for manufacturers that depend on globally sourced items. While some domestic producers benefit from protection against foreign competitors, economists say, companies operating within complex supply chains often face higher costs.
For manufacturers, the larger concern with tariffs is the uncertainty they pose — not just costs.
“You want predictability. You want certainty,” Timmons said in an interview following the facility tour. “Tariff policy, if applied in a strategic manner, can provide the certainty that you need. But when one decision is made and then withdrawn, and another decision is made, manufacturers really don’t know how to plan.”
Instability can be particularly difficult for small and medium-sized manufacturers, he said.
“They are operating on a very, very thin margin,” he said. “If they make the wrong calculation, that can cost them business. That can cost them opportunity. That, in some cases, can cost them their ability to stay in business.”
The NAM has cited the “Big Beautiful Bill” – which renewed key provisions of the 2017 tax reforms – as providing “rocket fuel” for manufacturing growth by lowering costs and offering companies greater confidence to invest in equipment, facilities and hiring.
Siemens Energy executives on Monday pointed to their own expansion plans as evidence of that.
“We are just so fortunate to be in a market right now that is so favorable for us to make these investments,” said Matt Neal, president of Siemens Energy North America.
The company has announced roughly $425 million in investments across North Carolina, including projects in Charlotte, Winston-Salem and Raleigh. In Charlotte, Siemens Energy is expanding gas turbine manufacturing and building power transformers, intended to strengthen domestic production of equipment that is often imported.
Neal said stability in trade policy would support more investment.
“We need to be very present in the strong market, and then any stability that we can get in the tariff regime would be helpful,” he said.
The Charlotte hub serves as a major manufacturing, repair and refurbishment center for gas turbines, steam turbines, generators and combustion components. The campus also houses engineering functions and an apprenticeship program focused on developing skilled technicians.
