Public Event Detail
Caterpillar paid $70M in tariffs last quarter
Public historical observation from the Merrowstone archive. This page shows event-level context only. Accepted assertions, evidence lineage, and relationship intelligence remain part of the premium research layer.
Event summary
Caterpillar incurred $70 million in tariffs in Q2 2019, contributing to a $328 million increase in manufacturing costs, according to CFO Andrew Bonfield. Despite these costs and weaker-than-expected earnings, the company managed to cover higher manufacturing costs through price realization and cost-cutting measures, including redesigning machines and reducing overall manufacturing costs by at least 5%. The article also notes the broader economic context of slowing manufacturing growth and global trade tensions affecting the OEM.