[T20] Impacts of Rise of Tariffs on Industries by ANIL SINGH

Izz (Mechanical engineering)

2025-05-07 04:43:48 UTC

The rise in tariffs, particularly those imposed by the United States in April 2025, can have significant ripple effects on the mechanical engineering industry. As a future entrant into this field, I recognize that mechanical engineering is closely tied to global supply chains, manufacturing, and trade. Tariffs on imported raw materials such as steel, aluminum, or high-precision components could increase production costs for many engineering firms. This may lead to reduced profit margins, project delays, or shifts in sourcing strategies.

Furthermore, companies will then pass on these highly increased cost to the consumers which will then decrease the demand for such materials stated above. Projects across borders will soon reduce significantly.

Qistina Ellyana (Early Childhood)

2025-05-10 15:37:56 UTC

Based on the recent rise of tariffs that is imposed by the United States, I believe my industry can be affected by it.

Considering that my industry, we heavily rely on resources to support our daily plans to enhance our children's ability to learn using resources. Some of the resources that we heavily rely on to teach our children can be things such as learning materials, furniture, toys and even educatonal tools. With the tariffs being implemented, it can potentially raise the costs and our budget for our preschools.

Another thing that the tariffs can affect is our food and supplies. When the tariffs are implemented, it can potentially affect the costs of imported food, cleaning products and even hygiene items for the preschools.

With the tariffs affecting our preschools, parents may have to pay more for the school fees as well due to the increase costings of our items.

Shaarnithaa (Early Childhood)

2025-05-12 11:26:46 UTC

The Early Childhood industry is likely to get affected by the rise of tariffs imposed by the United States. According to the sources being provided, the probability of a global tradewar occuring is high.

Singapore's economy is highly interconnected with global trade. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has indicated that these tariffs will significantly impact the nation's economic growth, businesses, and workers. While the ECE sector may not be directly involved in international trade, the ripple effects of a slowing economy could manifest in several ways.

Tariffs can lead to higher prices for imported goods, including educational materials and resources used in preschools. Such as books and toys.

Moreover, there will be budget constraints where economic downturns may result in reduced government revenues, potentially affecting funding and subsidies allocated to the ECE sector.

Jiayi (real estate business)

2025-05-12 12:59:16 UTC

The rise of tariffs can increase construction costs by making imported building materials like steel, lumber, and aluminum more expensive. Supply chain disruptions may also delay projects, raising holding costs for developers. As a result, higher expenses could lead to pricier homes and commercial properties, reducing affordability for buyers and renters.

Hidayat [ Nursing ]

2025-05-12 13:30:20 UTC

I would say it will impact indirectly. This is mainly due to the pharmaceutical side, whereby medications are imported from the US. So, to think logically, an increase in medication equals an increase in healthcare costs. Not to forget to quote what Mr Ong Ye Kung mentioned in a facebook post, " the cost of healthcare delivery is rising up, so hospital bills are also rising, largely driven by higher salaries of healthcare professionals."

I somewhat disagree with what he says. There are other factors to look at as well. For example, medication and operational cost have gone up as well. Next, advancement in medical technologies. 24% of the medical devices that we use in Singapore are from the US. Percentage might seem a little small but the amount of money we spent in equipment are in the range of $640 MILLION dollars. Not to mention about their[ministers] salaries.

To end of, yes , healthcare will be affected by the rise in tariff that was imposed by the US.

chloe chua (early childhood)

2025-05-12 15:21:14 UTC

I think the early childhood industry will be impacted in many ways by the rise in tariffs.

Firstly, it will be costly to get resources for lessons. Since we encourage authentic learning, some items that we need needs to be bought. With the rise in tariffs, these resources of good quality will be more expensive to get especially for a class of possibly 15 children.

Secondly, school fees might increase, reducing accessibility for preschool education for lower income families. Although there is support from the government but if the tariffs gradually increase, it might be more than what the government can support.

Lastly, the salary of early childhood educators might reduce, as the industry not only has to support the children's learning but also the livelihood of educators. With the rise of tariffs, there might be a possibility of a cut in salary.

Arif (early childhood)

2025-05-12 16:34:13 UTC

I think that our industry will get affected but not as much in a way. First of all, we will get affected because we are very resource heavy. So things from toys, books, technology and a few others are going to be more expensive and therefore we have to minimise the use of such resources or increase budget for resources. However, these problems might be negated because preschools can go back to more traditional methods like using recyclables as teaching tools for learning.

Food will be affected because most centres provide food for the children. With the prices of the food increasing due to the tariffs, it will be a burden on the centre’s financial situation because not only that they have to cut costs but they also have to plan which kind of foods to serve the children that still remain healthy for them.

I think that it will affect the salaries of teachers because most of their salary might go to the purchasing of resources such as food or classroom related (mentioned in para 1). Parents also affected since they are paying for the school fees that will increase as years go by.

Vanessa (Design)

2025-05-13 01:48:32 UTC

The rise of tariffs can significantly affect the design industry. Higher import costs for materials and tools make production more expensive, which limits creative choices and raises prices for clients. Supply chain disruptions can delay projects or reduce quality if alternatives are limited. Designers may also face tighter budgets from clients trying to cut costs. This situation may encourage designers to innovate using local or sustainable materials, and adapt their work to suit local markets. However, global collaboration may become more difficult due to rising costs and trade restrictions.

Cheyanne - Design

2025-05-13 02:01:31 UTC

i feel that the tariffs will definitely affect my industry.

we require materials to create prototypes, and eventually productions. if high tariffs are imposed everywhere, it would be hard to find materials to buy from at a reasonable price. other things such as cost of licensing from software might be affected too

Iffah (Design- Product Innovation)

2025-05-13 02:09:23 UTC

The tariffs might cause hiring freezes so looking for a job may be slightly more difficult as the amount of available jobs decreases while the number of people looking for jobs would only increase.

Apart from that, certain materials would be more expensive as they have to be imported in and could have an increased price from the tariffs. So they'll probably have to experiment with other materials etc.

Ethan Ong (Design - Architecture)

2025-05-13 02:20:19 UTC

The Trump-era tariffs—particularly those imposed on steel, aluminum, and various Chinese goods—have had a range of ripple effects across many industries, including architecture. While the architecture industry doesn't produce physical goods like steel or aluminum directly, it is deeply impacted by material costs, construction timelines, and the broader economic climate.

Jessie (Design- Product Innnovation)

2025-05-13 02:44:30 UTC

I think that tariffs may not be too big of an impact on my line of work, except for the importing of certain materials I would use.

We require different materials ranging from cardboard to PVC boards and other materials, and most of these materials are imported from other countries. So, the tariffs would definitely make the cost of these materials much higher.

Ellise (design architecture)

2025-05-13 07:13:42 UTC

The rise of tariffs does not really affect architects/ architecture firms in a way as the tariffs has not been imposed on services like architecture but for now, there is still uncertainty for the industry. Due to the tariffs, trading of materials and construction products can be harder due to the rise in prices. However, for the bigger countries, it might not be a problem as they can produce these things themselves and for cheaper.

Additionally, the weakening of economy can affect the architecture firms as people are investing less in certain projects or not even investing at all. This is especially hard for private firms or small business who do not have a large audience and can cause them to shut down.

For now, the tariffs do not really impact the industry but in the long run, it will, especially countries who are affected badly by it.