Major companies face a difficult task in estimating the impact of tariffs on their business
By DAMIAN J TROISE AP Business Writer NEW YORK AP Executives at specific of the world s biggest companies are faced with the tricky task of explaining how President Donald Trump s tariffs are impacting their business as they discuss the latest financial results Several are making their best estimate based on what they know at the moment others are pulling their outlooks altogether The only certainty is that they ll use a variation of the phrase uncertain times at least once as they speak with analysts Trump has imposed tariffs against key U S trading partners while also postponing other tariffs to give companies a chance to negotiate The process has left business and consumers uncertain amid a constantly shifting landscape Over the last inadequate months tariffs have been stated and in particular cases withdrawn within days Here s what chosen of those companies are saying Kraft Heinz Kraft Heinz is cutting its earnings forecast for the year citing a volatile milieu The maker of food staples including its namesake ketchup and boxed macaroni cheese is under pressure along with other food companies as inflation continues squeezing consumers Tariffs could force companies to raise prices on consumer staples and food products further fueling inflation We re closely monitoring the expected impacts from macro-economic pressures such as tariffs and inflation mentioned Kraft Heinz CEO Carlos Abrams-Rivera in a announcement JetBlue Airways JetBlue Airways pulled its financial forecast for the year over worries about slowing movement demand as consumer confidence weakens The passage sector including airlines faces an indirect impact from tariffs Tariffs threaten to raise prices on a wide range of consumer goods worsening inflation and squeezing consumers Discretionary spending on tour is often among the first budget items that households consider trimming or cutting thoroughly in order to deal with higher costs elsewhere In the first quarter we saw booking strength from January deteriorate into February and worsen into March commented Marty St George JetBlue s president in a message JetBlue mentioned it is considering threshold reductions fleet retirement and other costs savings to help boost profits and preserve cash A document from the Conference Board Tuesday proved that Americans confidence in the economic activity slumped for the fifth straight month to the lowest level since the onset of the COIVD- pandemic Coca-Cola Coca-Cola noted the impact of tariffs on its business is likely to be manageable Still the beverage giant moderated expectations for its full-year profit It now expects full-year adjusted earnings to grow to down from to previously Coke earned per share in Coke and other beverage makers are facing a tariff on the aluminum they use for cans among other items The company has noted that it could shift aluminum suppliers rely more heavily on plastic or glass bottles and take other measures to counteract the tariffs Last week rival PepsiCo lowered its full-year earnings expectations due to the impact of tariffs General Motors General Motors is reassessing its expectations for due to auto tariffs Related Articles Trump to offer automakers a few relief on his tariffs after worries they could hurt US factories US job openings fall to million in March the lowest level since September US consumer confidence plunges to lowest in years on tariff worries Nowhere to turn Small businesses dependent on imports from China are feeling more desperate Wall Street drifts as corporate profits pile higher along with uncertainty about Trump s bargain war The automaker is pushing back its conference call to discuss its guidance and quarterly results until Thursday so that it can assess feasible changes to the Trump tariffs On Tuesday the White House reported Trump will sign an executive order to relax certain of his tariffs on autos and auto parts GM s current forecast for earnings of to per share doesn t consider the possible impact of tariffs The auto tariffs could be particularly painful because major carmakers have production spread throughout North America Parts and the assembly process often cross multiple borders several times before a car is complete Carmakers face higher costs and that could mean higher prices for consumers prompting them to delay or forgo purchases AP Business writers Dee-Ann Durbin and Michelle Chapman contributed to this summary
