Don Braid: Mainfreight Managing Director on the impact of Trump's import tariff policies

World trade is ramping up rapidly ahead of the changeover of power to Donald Trump. 

The US President Elect has campaigned on an agenda of increased protectionism, with tariffs of up to 20% on all imports. 

He's also planning higher tariffs on Chinese goods, potentially setting the stage for another trade war. 

Mainfreight managing director Don Braid told Mike Hosking that if tariffs are applied, there'll be a price increase in some places. 

He says they are already seeing people filling their warehouses with stock-piled products before tariffs are applied. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
A lot of what next at the moment around the
new truck presidency. Of course, corporates here with US links
have a lot to try and work out. Main Freight
Managing director Don Braid to give us an insight, Don
morning to you in morning monk the broad stuff. First,
how big is your operation in the US?

Speaker 2 (00:16):
We got nineteen hundred and fifty two people across Sadie branches.
We'll go close to nine hundred million US and revenue
this year, so.

Speaker 1 (00:26):
You've got a lot of to statement. Do you see
things fundamentally changing or not?

Speaker 2 (00:34):
In the short term, we're already seeing front loading by
customers around the world wanting to fill our warehouses with
product before supposed tariffs will be a plot. In the
long term, who knows, you know, we'll ride the wave.
If we get a stronger US economy, that'll be good
for the business within within America for US. If tariffs

(00:57):
are on China product, then we might see less product
moving from China to America, but we'll be there and
wanting to take part.

Speaker 1 (01:05):
So your yours is an individual story. Because of course
we're coming at this from a New Zealand side of
the equation, so you would deal with Chinese product. The
argument is tariffs are about China, not about New Zealand.
Do you think that's fair?

Speaker 2 (01:18):
Yeah, I do, although you know, all the rhetoric is
that he's going to apply tariffs to all imports, which
you know we've also got Europe to concern ourselves with
as well, and then does you retaliate with tariffs of
their own So that becomes a bit of a bidding war.
But for us, if you've got a stronger economy, then

(01:40):
you were likely to get more imports as a consequence.

Speaker 1 (01:44):
Well, you make a very good point. I mean, we
already have a world of tariffs for goodness sake. I mean,
look look at the Brandy and the cows, and the
evs and the China and the EU at the moment.
Can you manage tariffs and simply get on with life?

Speaker 2 (01:55):
They are what they are, Yeah, exactly right, And you
know they become an inflationary product for the American economy.
But you know, people still want to buy product is
not necessary, not all product that they consume as manufactured
in America. So if tariffs are applied, they'll apply the
price increase.

Speaker 1 (02:15):
And from our point of view, how many products do
you think could stand the tariff and still do well.
See I think of top end wine, the very best
cut of beef New York people on the Upper East
Side will pay anything in a tariff. Doesn't make any difference.
Or am I being delusional?

Speaker 2 (02:34):
I think you're right. Although it's interesting. We do do
a lot of beverage and it's beverage that's pre loading
those warehouses right now, so clearly they want that product
in the market well before if there's a tariff to
be applied.

Speaker 1 (02:49):
Give us the down braid view of the world right now.
How messy is it?

Speaker 2 (02:54):
Ah? Yes, messy acause economic recessions. But it's still exciting
and we still don't business And we got up this
morning and they had an expresso. It's still fun.

Speaker 1 (03:06):
You can't argue with that. I like your inside don't
break the main Freight Managing Director.

Speaker 2 (03:11):
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