Insights Amid Evolving Tariff Announcements and Economic Fluctuations
Fluid tariff policy discussions are impacting various sectors, including the automotive industry. At Enterprise Fleet Management, we remain committed to anticipating and adapting while helping our clients navigate their fleet planning strategies.
According to a recent S&P Global Mobility report, approximately one-third of U.S. commercial vehicles built in Mexico and Canada could be impacted by the 25% auto tariffs, which took effect April 3. While recent executive orders have relaxed the impact on some automotives and parts tariffs, the complete impact on vehicle costs remains unknown.
We are closely following the latest industry information and having proactive discussions with OEMs and key partners. Below are some important insights and recommendations to consider.
Current Fleet Strategy: Right Sizing and Right Typing
Understanding Business Cycles: Assessing yearly fluctuations in fleet demand and mapping out needs based on historical business cycles helps ensure a flexible strategy to accommodate growth or other needs. As your dedicated fleet management company, we strive to maintain flexibility and choice through a proactive approach that evaluates total cost of ownership under different scenarios including:
- Monitoring the Used Vehicle Market: Increased tariffs on new vehicle sales has raised the average price for retail and wholesale used vehicles according to a Cox Automotive report on April 15. “After a near-term surge in buying, we expect sales to fall, new and used prices to increase, and some models to be eliminated. The tighter supply and higher prices we expect will be reminiscent of 2021,” says Jonathan Smoke, Chief Economist, Cox Automotive.
- Avoiding Unplanned Purchases: Stay in close communication to share updates on business goals and objectives. This helps ensure the best options for buying new vehicles, selling and avoiding overspending. Understanding key objectives and supplying suitable vehicles based on job requirements, company initiatives, employee needs, and budget helps minimize acquisition and overall fleet costs.
- Identifying Underutilized Vehicles: Regularly communicate with your dedicated Client Strategy Manager to reduce unnecessary carrying costs, as idle vehicles equate to idle capital. This helps to ensure resale decisions align with current market conditions and long-term financial goals, avoiding quick sales.
- Forecasting Vehicle Demand: Having the agility to expedite vehicle procurement to meet growth demands helps preserve capital by avoiding outright purchases and overpayment due to limited dealer inventory.
Market-Specific Opportunities
Amid economic fluctuations, identifying and acting on market-specific opportunities helps optimize fleet operations. Leveraging industry insights and collaborating with OEMs and key partners, we offer strategic guidance to help mitigate costs and ensure fleet efficiency while accounting for the following:
- Planning and Continuous Evaluation: We use data and industry expertise to review your fleet plan. Routine monitoring and analytics to help buy and sell vehicles at the right time, reducing total fleet ownership costs and capitalizing on market-specific opportunities.
- Assessing Market-Specific Opportunities: With tariff volatility and anticipated supply chain disruptions likely to impact vehicle sales and parts, it is best to capitalize on locking in orders of model year 2025 and 2026 for additional or replacement vehicles. Avoid delays that could affect future business forecasts by staying in close communication with your Client Strategy Manager.
- Staying on Schedule with Fleet Replacements: S&P Global Mobility reports that the net impact of tariffs on new truck prices could be 9%, and Smoke of Cox Automotive predicted that new and used vehicle prices could soon increase by 10% or more. Anticipation of these new tariffs has led to increased demand, with retail sales of motor vehicles and parts jumping 5.3% in March 2025—the strongest monthly retail growth in two years. If additional vehicles or replacements are needed, prioritizing acquisition could help with timely availability and delivery based on days supply, incentives and current industry data.
At Enterprise Fleet Management, we are here to help navigate changes confidently, offering proactive strategies to optimize fleet performance and help minimize costs. Together, we can help turn challenges into opportunities, so your fleet remains resilient and efficient in any economic climate.