America’s missing manufacturing renaissance

Hyped machinesPhotograph: Getty Images

Jan 6th 2026|3 min read

LAST YEAR the Trump administration’s justifications for its tariffs shifted almost as much as the levies themselves. President Donald Trump and his team have variously defended their border taxes as a stop-gap negotiating tool, a weapon aimed at China and a scheme to reshape global trade and finance. But even as the arguments shifted, one remained central: the notion that tariffs will inspire a revival in American manufacturing. As he announced his first volley of global levies, Mr Trump promised: “Jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country.”