The Belgian sector is feeling the effects of US trade tariffs. Agoria estimates the economic impact at 1,500 jobs and 70 million euros in lost investment.
Donald Trump’s erratic moves are not only felt at the gas pump and on energy bills. Industry federation Agoria also sees a major impact on the Belgian technology sector. In one year, the sector missed out on 1,500 jobs and 70 million in investments, but it is also taking hits in other ways.
It has been exactly one year since Trump started a trade war with the entire world with much fanfare (including islands inhabited by penguins): a day proclaimed by the president as ‘Liberation Day’. For the Belgian IT sector, it was anything but a liberation. Agoria surveyed 194 Belgian technology companies about how they are feeling the impact.
70 million euros
The survey shows that Belgian companies are absorbing the impact both directly and indirectly through their customers. The Belgian economy relies on exports, and the US is a key market. Due to the tariffs, exports to the United States have fallen sharply. However, the sector is also seeing investments from other sectors they supply to fail to materialize.
Agoria estimates the cost of those lost investments at 70 million euros. The impact is also being felt in the job market. The sector has missed out on 1,500 jobs since last year. Economic uncertainty means that two out of three companies will recruit less, and over forty percent are also tightening their purse regarding investments.
Focus on Europe
Since the tariffs took effect, exports from the Belgian technology sector to the United States have fallen by seven percent. Belgian companies are looking for new markets: 66 percent are actively working on diversification. They are primarily looking at the internal European market, but Canada and the Middle East are also emerging as alternatives.
According to Agoria, the Belgian government must focus on international trade agreements, but the key lies primarily in a stronger European market. This requires uniform regulation. “A large, well-functioning European internal market is the most powerful protection we can offer our companies. Today, fragmented regulation within the EU is an even greater drag on trade than the Trump tariffs,” says Agoria CEO Bart Steuckers.