Just under half of businesses—49%—said that increased costs of imported products are the primary current threat they face, and 48% of U.S. companies said they’ve exited at least one supplier relationship because of tariffs. More than half—54%—said tariff-related pressures have led them to enter new supplier relationships in unfamiliar markets or regions. And all of this hasn’t just been stressful for the financial side of the business: 73% said that tariffs made contracts more complex and managing them is more challenging. More than seven in 10 reported higher costs around contracts.

Of the companies seeing cost issues from tariffs, those problems run deep. Nearly all of them—a total of 47%—say they’re worried about how tariffs will impact consumer pricing and demand. And 42% say that reduced profit margins are also top of mind.

For the time being, however, the tariff regime is here to stay. And while the U.S. Supreme Court said last week that it will hear a challenge to their legality in its upcoming term, it’s not clear how the ruling would impact business. Forbes’ Alison Durkee writes that if the tariffs are invalidated, it could grant a refund to businesses that have paid them. But it might also cause some broader shakeups to the overall economy—as well as spur the Trump Administration to try to find a more legally acceptable way to enact tariffs. 

Trump’s biggest legislative accomplishment to date is getting his One Big Beautiful Bill Act through Congress at the beginning of the summer. The bill codifies a host of Trump’s economic, tax and policy priorities, including several that could help small and medium-sized businesses looking to make deals. I spoke with Josh Littlejohn, managing director and leader of the national tax M&A team at middle market-focused financial advisory firm CBIZ, about the bill’s impact on deal-making, and an excerpt from our conversation is later in this newsletter. 

If you like what you read here, you can easily share it online and on your social media pages. This newsletter, and all previous editions of Forbes CFO, can be found on our website here.

Until next time.

Monday night, a federal appeals court dismissed President Donald Trump’s emergency bid to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook. Trump, who has been frustrated with the Fed for not cutting interest rates yet in his second term, has been trying to remake the Fed in his image. He moved late last month to fire Cook—the first Black woman to serve on the board—based on accusations of mortgage fraud brought forward by Bill Pulte, Trump’s Federal Housing Finance Authority director. She sued to be able to keep her job, arguing that the law governing the Federal Reserve only lets the president remove members for cause, and the recent accusations of something that happened prior to her appointment on the board don’t rise to that standard.

This meeting will feature one new Trump-aligned Fed governor. Also on Monday night, the Senate cleared the nomination of Trump economic adviser Stephen Miran on a party-line vote. Miran’s nomination has raised concerns about the Fed’s independence from politics, especially after Miran said that he plans to serve while keeping his job as chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers—but will be taking unpaid leave. Last week, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., referred to Miran as a “Donald Trump puppet” and warned he would help the president “undermine the independence and seize control of the Fed.”

But regardless of who is sitting in the chairs at this week’s meeting, the economic picture makes for difficult decisions on the part of Fed governors. August’s inflation hit 2.9%, according to figures released by the Labor Department last week, with core inflation—minus more volatile food and energy costs—at 3.1%. These figures represent a month-over-month increase of 0.4% compared to July, and are above the Fed’s 2% target inflation rate. But Forbes senior contributor Erik Sherman writes that the rise in unemployment—hitting 4.3% in August and with only 22,000 new jobs created—and the big question mark of how tariffs will continue to impact the economy make any Fed decisions on interest rates more challenging.

The biggest change narrows OSHA’s General Duty Clause to exclude duties that are, by nature, hazardous. But, Segal writes, that shifts risk management to contracts, insurance and internal safety programs. That could most directly impact employers with higher workers’ compensation premiums and more liability exposure. 

Another important change establishes a “heat rule,” requiring employers to establish processes for water and rest breaks during high-heat seasons. This proposed rule started working its way through the process last year, under former President Joe Biden. Segal writes it would be helpful for employee safety, but could require significant changes to schedules and numbers of workers for a company to be in compliance.

Next, they need to work on their mental health by talking with someone about the challenges they are facing. “We want CEOs showing up as emotionally attuned as possible, whether that’s showing up to inspire you on the vision of the company, or to be a little tougher on the performance,” Astorino said. “How I do that is so critical because it just cascades and has ramifications throughout the whole company.”

And finally, executives need to realize that—especially right now—they have an impossible job. That realization, Astorino said, can help them understand that they have to let go of the wheel a bit; working harder or doing more won’t solve all of the issues they face today.

“That’s hard for people,” Astorino said. “Who wants to be a CEO? Who wants to be a business leader? They want to solve problems. They want to win. They’re competitive and they are ambitious, and they want to have the mantle of responsibility.”

“And so you have to allow a lot more space to tolerate things that I cannot control,” he said.

Writing sales proposals can be challenging. Here are some ChatGPT prompts you can use to make it easier on you—and increase your close rate.