Financial decision-makers have expressed increased concern over tariffs and trade policy, according to the CFO Survey conducted by Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and the Federal Reserve Banks of Richmond and Atlanta. The survey, which closed on June 6, 2025, indicates that 40% of respondents see these issues as a pressing concern for their firms this quarter. This marks a record share since the second quarter of 2020.
In addition to tariffs and trade policy, concerns about economic uncertainty, monetary policy, and weakening demand were highlighted. CFOs have adjusted their projections for 2025, revising higher their unit cost and price growth expectations while lowering revenue growth forecasts. Expectations for real GDP growth over the next four quarters have been reduced to 1.4%, down from 1.9% in the previous survey. The probability assigned to negative year-ahead economic growth has increased from 15% to 23%.
Atlanta Fed economist Brent Meyer noted that firms concerned about tariffs expect their nominal sales revenue growth to lag behind price growth projections, indicating an anticipated contraction in real revenue growth for 2025.
The impact of trade policy uncertainty is also affecting investment plans. Over 40% of financial executives reported postponing or canceling investment plans due to these concerns during the first half of 2025.
Additionally, around 40% of CFOs indicated they would pass tariff-related cost increases onto customers. Among these firms, the median firm plans to pass through all tariff-related cost increases.
The CFO Survey provides insights into corporate outlooks and can be accessed at www.cfosurvey.org.
