On 2 April 2025, President Trump’s sweeping set of tariffs, under the “Liberation Day” initiative, has sparked significant market volatility, including potential impacts on the water sector and companies providing services and solutions. As of 17 April 2025, the Atlanta Federal Reserve’s GDPNow model projects a -2.2% annual GDP growth, down from a high of +3.9% on 3 February 2025.
With a potential economic downturn threatening industrial activity, spending on water management could quickly slow in the near term. According to Bluefield Research’s forecasts, U.S. industrial water management—encompassing capital (CAPEX) and operating expenditures (OPEX)—across 12 key verticals is projected to total US$39.3 billion in 2025. Projected compound annual growth rates (CAGR) range from just 0.8% for textiles to 9.3% for data centers, for which rapid infrastructure buildouts and intensive cooling requirements are driving water-related investments. Impacts from tariffs and recession will vary segment-by-segment.
