Half of all company profit warnings last month flagged a hit from the mounting global trade war amid the fallout from US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff hikes, according to new figures. The latest profit warning report from EY-Parthenon lays bare the impact of Mr Trump’s tariff increases and the escalating trade battle with China, with 50% of alerts from UK listed firms in April citing direct or indirect impact of the trade woes. Firms issuing warnings last month also saw their share price drop by 19% on average as the fears over global trade disruption sparked stock market turmoil. A raft of firms worldwide have sent out alerts over their profits since the tariff hikes were unleashed by Mr Trump on April 2. Wall Street firms have been knocked particularly hard, with those warning over an earnings hit in recent weeks including General Motors, Kraft Heinz and PepsiCo. In the UK, warnings have been issued by the likes of manufacturer TT Electronics and ship broking giant Clarkson, while a long list have also pulled their guidance amid the uncertainty. The report also shows that nearly one in five (18%) listed firms issued a warning in the last 12 months – “a level typically associated with a period of economic shock”, according to Jo Robinson at EY-Parthenon. It comes after 62 firms issued profit warnings in the first three months of the year. While down 11% year-on-year, Ms Robinson said the first quarter data reveals “underlying weaknesses that will be magnified by recent tariff disruptions and the resulting economic fallout”. Claire Gambles, EY-Parthenon turnaround and restructuring strategy partner, added: “UK companies have faced many challenges in recent years, but ongoing global trade disruption has the potential to bring even more substantial and far-reaching repercussions. “Demand and supply shocks from the pandemic and geopolitical events were significant but primarily cyclical disruptions, whereas major changes to international trade policy may have more enduring effects.” In the first quarter, a record two in five (40%) of profit warnings cited contract and order cancellations or delays as a leading factor behind the warning. Just over a quarter (26%) of warnings saw policy change and geopolitical uncertainty flagged as a key driver, while 18% cited labour market issues. The report added that software and computer services were the sectors seeing the highest number of profit warnings in the first quarter.