Sylvie Grandjean has been attending the industrial machinery manufacturers' trade fair in Atlanta, Georgia, for several years. But in the 2025 edition, which began on Monday, May 12, "there's one topic of conversation on everyone's lips," said the chief executive of Redex: the increase in tariffs of 10% for goods exported from Europe, and up to 25% for cars and steel and aluminum products, decreed by US President Donald Trump in March and April.

Redex, which manufactures measuring instruments for various sectors, including aerospace – the company notably works with SpaceX, Elon Musk's space venture – produces in France as well as in Germany, but 90% of its turnover comes from exports, including 15% from the United States. Its American subsidiary, with about 20 employees, has been based in New Jersey since the 1980s and focuses on customer services. It has assessed the consequences of the tariff increases. "Our clients have agreed to absorb most of the additional cost of the 'Trump tariffs,' which will be reflected in consumer sales prices," said Grandjean. She viewed this as the lesser evil, after several weeks of "worry and stress."

Like Redex, many French companies have been navigating in fog for weeks. They are trying to cope with the present situation while anxiously awaiting July 9, the end of the 90-day-pause decreed on April 9 by Trump, to determine the exact level of tariff increases. "It's very difficult for a company to move forward as long as it doesn't know precisely what the rules will be. At the moment, uncertainty and confusion prevail," said Alexandre Saubot, president of France Industrie, an organization representing major French industrial groups.

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