Meyer: 2024 delivers more questions than answers

At the close of most years, it can be satisfying to relax a bit and take in what occurred over the past 12 months.

From our perspective at Rubber News, that means seeing what the big topics were that drove our coverage for the year, sharing the trends that had the most impact on the tire and rubber products industries and picking the brains of the top leaders in our field.

But the close of 2024 feels a bit different.

Don't get me wrong, there were plenty of impactful stories that kept our staff busy this past year. However, the changing of the calendar this time has me thinking more about what will come in 2025, rather than reflecting on the past year,

There's no denying that Donald Trump's victory in the November election and his impending return to the Oval Office has much to do with that. There will be many areas where Trump 2.0 will bring drastic change from the policies of the Biden administration.

For the tire and rubber sector, there is no less wonder as to how differently 2025 will look than 2024.

Regulations are an easy place to start. The American Chemistry Council says the Trump administration's deregulation strategy will bring financial opportunities for the chemical industry at large. They claimed that during Biden's time in office, regulations raised compliance costs for the industry by up to 50 percent.

The automotive sector's move to electric vehicles also may take somewhat of a detour. While the sprint to EVs has slowed considerably over the past year, Trump's support of fossil fuels and limited environmental regulations already has vehicle makers reconsidering their drivetrain mix.

His vow to make the U.S. energy-independent with a return to more drilling also will have ramifications for rubber and polymer goods makers that supply the oil, gas and energy sectors. With the demand for oil still rising before an expected plateau and decline over the next decade, the timeline for an evolution to a truly green energy world may stretch out even further.

Tariffs are another area that will be interesting to watch. President-elect Trump has promised tariffs as high as 60 percent for goods imported from China, and large increases in duties on goods brought in from North American neighbors Canada and Mexico.

But those views aren't always supported by big businesses or other GOP office holders. Just look at the history of tariffs in the tire industry, dating back to those enacted when Barack Obama was president.

In almost all of those cases, the United Steelworkers led the charge for tariffs as a way to boost tire manufacturing employment in the U.S. The tire makers typically stayed mum—or even spoke out against the tariffs—because these same companies often were the ones importing tires from low-cost nations to supply tires they said couldn't be cost-effectively produced in the U.S.

With all this happening, I am eager to see how 2025 plays out, and how players in our industry—as they always do—look for ways to prosper in the changing landscape.

Meyer is editor of Rubber News. Follow him on LinkedIn and reach him at [email protected].