Global Firms Adjust Growth Projections Amid US Trade Tensions

(MENAFN) United States Leader Donald Trump’s “America First” strategies, implemented since January, have prompted several prominent corporations to reduce or postpone their financial objectives in their first-quarter financial statements.

These lowered forecasts stemmed from factors such as trade tariffs, rising costs, currency fluctuations, and the possibility of softened consumer demand.

American duties, along with retaliatory levies—particularly from China—played a major role in shaping the initial quarter.

Experts noted that concerns over the inflation-recession paradox created hesitations about market demand and heightened unpredictability in major industries, complicating companies’ ability to chart their future direction.

Additionally, the slowdown of the US economy after a three-year period of expansion further added to the instability.

Analysts emphasized that India cannot substitute China in terms of US trade, even though the US has been strengthening ties with India.

The pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk from Denmark adjusted its 2025 revenue growth estimate down from 16–24 percent to 13–21 percent due to reduced sales projections for its anti-obesity drug Wegovy.

It also scaled back its operational profit growth forecast from 19–27 percent to 16–24 percent.

Meanwhile, Germany’s Mercedes-Benz Group abandoned its 2025 EBITDA objective, warning that if the 25 percent import duties on vehicles become long-lasting, profit margins in the automotive sector could shrink.

The company plans to implement further cost-cutting measures in its future product offerings and intends to focus more on gasoline and diesel models rather than electric vehicles.

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