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A British manufacturer that makes Peppa Pig and Fireman Sam toys has said trading with the US remains “uncertain” after it paused shipping Chinese-made products to the country because of Donald Trump’s tariffs.
London-listed Character Group said on Friday that it had put shipments from China to the US “on hold” in April after the White House announced hefty levies for imports of Chinese-made goods.
The company also withdrew its guidance for the current financial year last month, as a result of the introduction of tariffs by the US.
Sales of Character’s products in the US, including stretchy action figures in the Heroes of Goo Jit Zu collection, represented 20% of the group’s revenues in the last financial year, which ended on 31 August 2024. The company said “substantially all” of its products sold in the US were manufactured in China.
The company said its products earmarked for the US had not left a factory in China.
Tit-for-tat tariffs between the US and China were raised multiple times in April in an escalating trade war, reaching on Chinese exports to the US and on US exports to China, before the countries met for negotiations last weekend.
The current pause in tariffs between the US and China was welcomed by the manufacturer as a sign that “gives hope for a negotiated resolution”, but it added that uncertainty remained because of the “volatile and evolving trade policy landscape”.
The toy company added that economic uncertainty resulting from tariffs had knocked global sales, as customers have “become increasingly cautious” and unwilling to commit to orders.
“This is impacting sales in all our key territories,” Character said as it reported its half-year results.
Despite the ongoing uncertainty, the company said it remained confident that it would be profitable in the current financial year.
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The US-based industry body, the Toy Association, has previously said that 80% of toys sold in the country are manufactured in China.
The organisation has campaigned for toys to kept free from tariffs, with their president calling them “essential products for childhood development and early education”.
Retail sales of toys generated over $28bn (£21bn) in the US in 2024, according to figures from Circana’s US retail tracking services, which covers of the country’s toy market.
However, Trump has previously said that American children might “have two dolls instead of 30 dolls” if his tariffs result in products becoming costlier and more scarce for US consumers.
