Jabil chief executive Mark Mondello said what we’ve all been thinking about the US-China trade tariffs.
On a conference call with analysts, Mondello called the issue “a big deal.” He underscored how Jabil could benefit if customers start to move manufacturing from China, as the EMS is well-positioned with factories all over Southeastern Asia, including Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore and Taiwan — not to mention Mexico and Eastern Europe. And he broke down the potential impacts:
- “If the tariff and trade issues get resolved, that’s great.”
- “If the trade and tariff issues create some choppy seas and a storm here and there, that’s really good for (Jabil), because … there’s nobody that has our scale that can move product around with the agility and the flexibility that we can and, in fact, we do that all the time.”
- “If the trade tariff issues become some nasty hurricane, it’s going to be bad for all.”
Indeed.