It’s no secret that tariff mitigation strategies are top of mind for U.S. businesses involved in importing and exporting. Shifting trade policies, rising duties, and ongoing compliance uncertainty have taken their toll on the trade community. In this high-stakes environment, every company is looking for ways to reduce costs while maintaining compliance and global competitiveness.
To better understand how businesses are responding, AAEI reached out to 100 importers and asked: What tariff mitigation strategies are being used at your company, and how effective are they?
The results shed light on what’s working—and where gaps remain. The most used and most effective strategy cited was supply chain management and the use of moving sourcing and/or manufacturing to reduce tariff exposure.
Ranking of Top Tariff Mitigation Strategies by Effectiveness
- Supply Chain Management – Outside of the U.S.
- Pricing Management
- Leveraging AI to Help Mitigate Tariff Impacts
The least used strategies cited were receiving supplier concessions, moving sourcing and/or manufacturing to the U.S., and leveraging Foreign Trade Zones and Bonded Warehouses.
What Do These Responses Reveal?
The data shows many companies are leaning into proactive, structural changes rather than reactive workarounds. Moving suppliers—once a last resort—is now a mainstream tool in the mitigation playbook. Meanwhile, pricing strategies remain an essential lever for navigating cost impacts.
The increasing use of AI to support tariff classification and policy tracking signals a broader digital transformation across compliance functions. However, it also raises important questions about accessibility to emerging technologies, especially for small and mid-sized companies with limited resources.
What Strategies are Underutilized?
Tools like Foreign Trade Zones (FTZs) and bonded warehouses, long touted as cost-saving solutions, ranked lowest in use. This may reflect underutilization due to the complexity of implementation.
What Does the Trade Community Need Moving Forward?
American businesses need more than technical workarounds—it needs clarity, predictability, and support. Compliance professionals are looking for peer insight, shared solutions, and a strong, unified voice representing their interests in Washington.
AAEI’s Statement on the Recent Trade Deals and the Importance of Clarity in Tariff Application.
Stay Connected. Stay Informed.
AAEI hosts Trade Focus Committee meetings on Thursdays at 2:00 p.m. EDT, where members exchange real-time insights on updates, changes, and challenges in trade.
If you’re already a member, we encourage you to attend and participate by accessing the member hub. If you’re not yet a member, now is the time to consider joining AAEI—and connect with a network that’s shaping the future of global trade compliance.