Newell Brands (NWL) is working to reduce its reliance on China to minimize the impact of US import tariffs, Chief Executive Christopher H. Peterson said on the company's Q4 earnings call Friday.

Peterson said the company has been pursuing a "tariff mitigation strategy" for quite some time and about a year ago intensified its efforts to lower reliance on insourced manufacturing in China.

The company is focused on two main actions: it has insourced production from China and invested in its existing manufacturing network, completing several projects in Writing, Baby, and Home products. Second, it has been shifting production from China to other countries through existing and new suppliers.

As a result, imports from China now make up only about 15% of the company's total costs of goods sold, with many Baby products exempt from tariffs, Peterson said. Newell Brands expects this exposure to drop below 10% by the end of 2025.

He also said the company is monitoring the situation related to Mexico and Canada tariffs

closely. Imports from Mexico represent about 5%, while imports from Canada are negligible.

"While we recognize this will likely be an area of ongoing uncertainty, we also believe it can

be a potential source of competitive advantage. For example, there are several categories where competitors continue to source from China," Peterson said.

Newell shares were down nearly 28% in recent trading activity.

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