With Trump-era tariff shocks shaking global trade again, Andrew Mamonitis, Vice President – APAC, Manufacturing Division, ECI Solutions, outlines how Australian manufacturers can adapt, optimise and thrive in FY2026.
Up, down, in, out… Since the commencement of the second Trump presidency on 20 January 2025, tariffs have dominated the business conversation. The United States’ major trading partners, including Canada, Mexico and China, have had them imposed, paused, hiked and slashed in the space of a few weeks.
Here in Australia, we’ve gotten off somewhat lightly with 10% tariffs across the board, except for steel and aluminium products, which have been slapped with a tariff of 25%.
Whether that’s where things will land long term is anyone’s guess. In the meantime, the FUD – fear, uncertainty, doubt – factor has been off the scale for many Australian manufacturers that export their products to the US.
Taking trading conditions in your stride
In fact, their predicament is far from unique. Some local producers faced comparable challenges in 2020, shortly after the onset of the Covid crisis, when Australia’s largest trading partner, China, suddenly slapped higher tariffs on a range of products including wine.
Sales contracted dramatically as a result, leaving them scrambling to find new markets for their suddenly surplus stock.
Fast forward five years and, in many instances, it’s proven to be a story of struggle that’s had a happy ending. Pulling in their belts and pivoting to other overseas markets on the fly enabled hard-hit producers to survive and thrive despite the unexpected shake-up of the long-standing status quo.
A surprising number of businesses have found themselves in stronger positions as a result – their operations leaner and tougher, their markets diversified and their teams battle-hardened and better prepared for emerging threats and opportunities.
Smart steps to survive uncertain times
Australia’s manufacturing industry would do well to follow their example in the upcoming financial year.
Taking positive action can be tricky when times are uncertain – the natural human reaction for many, business leaders included, is to ride it out in the hope things improve or revert to the way they used to be.
Unfortunately, sitting tight is no way to safeguard your business and ensure it has a future selling goods at home and abroad. In fact, it’s a surefire way to ensure you are vulnerable – to today’s trading uncertainties and to whatever challenges tomorrow may bring.
Focusing on new territories and markets, and optimising your operations, will see you better placed to combat the challenges of a volatile international trade environment.
Laying the foundations for continuing success
Decommissioning legacy software programs and platforms and migrating business-critical data to a single cloud-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution is one way small and medium manufacturers can give themselves a solid efficiency boost.
Choose a vendor that understands the unique challenges and requirements of the manufacturing industry and you’ll enjoy a range of benefits, from improved shop floor control to real-time visibility into your productivity, information and operations. That’s an invaluable resource for your leadership team – one that will enable them to respond rapidly to changing conditions and make timely, data-driven decisions about the future direction of the business.
Ideally, your ERP software of choice will incorporate extensive safeguards to keep your business and customer data private and secure, including multi-factor authentication, firewall-protected servers and the latest encryption technology.
Creating a stronger future for your manufacturing business in FY2026
In 2025, former US president Benjamin Franklin’s quoted observation that “nothing in life is certain except death and taxes” has never rung more true. Today’s manufacturers are faced with many uncertainties, among them a shifting international trading landscape in which tariffs look likely to play a significant part.
Pursuing fresh opportunities, operating efficiently and drawing on current data to make business-critical decisions will be the key to surviving and thriving in the next 12 months and beyond.
If that’s a priority for your manufacturing business, there are tools and technologies that make it easier to do – and they should be top of your investment list for FY2026.
