Key Points
- The U.S. has lost 72,000 manufacturing jobs since President Trump announced the “Liberation Day” tariffs in April.
- The tariffs were supposed to bring manufacturing jobs “roaring back.”
- Economists say the tariffs have raised costs for domestic manufacturers and created a climate of uncertainty.
- The decline in manufacturing is a long-term trend, but the tariffs haven’t helped.
When President Trump declared “Liberation Day” last spring and slapped a wave of new tariffs on imports, he promised that manufacturing jobs would “come roaring back.” But eight months later, the exact opposite has happened. The U.S. has lost 72,000 manufacturing jobs since the tariffs were announced, and the sector is still shedding workers.
So, what went wrong?
Economists say that while Trump’s tariffs were supposed to make American-made goods more competitive, they’ve had unintended consequences. For one, they’ve raised the cost of key components that many domestic manufacturers rely on. Think of an EV plant in the U.S. that needs to import batteries containing rare-earth elements from overseas. The tariffs just make their products more expensive to build.
But the bigger problem, according to many, is the uncertainty. Trump’s erratic trade policy, with its constant threats and reversals, has left businesses paralyzed. Instead of investing and hiring, they are holding back, unsure of what the next move from the White House will be.
“With rates constantly changing, what becomes very difficult for businesses is to plan,” said one senior economist.
Of course, the decline in U.S. manufacturing is a long-term trend that started decades before Trump took office. Automation and China’s rise have played a huge role. But the tariffs, which were supposed to be the solution, seem to have only made things worse.
The reality is that bringing back a massive number of manufacturing jobs is probably impossible, tariffs or no tariffs. As a country gets richer, its economy naturally shifts from making things to providing services. That’s what’s happened in the U.S., where most of the job growth in 2025 was in sectors like healthcare and restaurants.
