Mr Denton said uncertainty surrounding US tariffs and trade policy is acting as a “tax” on international businesses.
“What we’re seeing on a global basis is heightened levels of uncertainty,”
he said, adding that the lack of clear direction on trade policy is shaking business confidence and disrupting global trade planning.
Citing a recent Pulse survey of ICC’s global business network to assess the impact of newly announced US tariff measures, Mr Denton highlighted the growing challenges for small businesses.
Conducted across 68 countries the survey shows that 77% of firms report direct or knock-on risks from the tariffs, and 48% say the measures have already impacted their supply chains or market strategy.
“What that tells you is that small businesses are really feeling this as well, and they do not have the resources that large businesses do. It’s just problematic, and even for large business this is very complicated,” he said
Mr Denton called for continued international cooperation citing ICC’s long-standing support for a multilateral rules-based trading system.
“The reason we’ve been able to see a decline in poverty globally is because we actually have rules-based trading systems operating,” he said
