EU Commission Vice-President and High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas gives a press conference prior to the EU Foreign Affairs meeting on July 15, 2025. Credit: Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

Europe has overtaken the US as the region to which companies are shifting overseas investment in response to high tariffs, according to a new report.

The most recent edition of GlobalData’s Tariffs Sentiment Polls report details the results of a survey carried out by the company that found a quarter (25%) of businesses are shifting investments to Europe in response to the tariffs being introduced by the Trump administration in the US. Slightly fewer (23%) are shifting investments to the US itself.

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The finding represents a change of leadership in this area, with the US having previously commanded greater inward investment.

“Those moving investments to Europe may see opportunities for strategic diversification, with the region offering a more stable and reliable trading environment among major economies amid uncertainty surrounding the US and potential further US-China trade tensions,” GlobalData states in the report.

Nearly a fifth (18%) of survey respondents indicated that they are shifting investment to Asia-Pacific (excluding China) and China. They are followed by the Middle East and Africa (14%), Canada (12%) and South and Central America (excluding Mexico and Canada).

Only 12% of companies have not altered overseas investment plans due to high tariffs, the survey found, although it added that this figure may change as companies gain more clarity on the status of tariffs as US trade deals are (or are not) struck.

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Elsewhere, the survey found that companies are split on adjusting overall business investments in response to the new tariffs. Around a fifth each expect to increase overall business investments (22%) and to decrease overall investments (21%).

In relation to expecting to increase investments, the report says: “This may be driven by efforts to enhance operational efficiency amid a higher pricing outlook, invest in alternative supply chains (including placating the US administration in the case of US investments), or capitalise on market opportunities from competitors’ price increases.”

A little over a third (36%) are unsure about what they will do, with GlobalData suggesting: “This may reflect companies adopting a cautious, wait-and-see strategy on upcoming US trade deals and the status of proposed higher US reciprocal tariffs.”

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