Unpacking June’s Procurement Landscape

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The first half of 2025 is officially behind us, making this a good time to reflect on recent procurement trends and recap some of the issues and events that have been impacting buyers over the last month. Some of the trends are specific to the electronics sector while others touch a wider swath of procurement departments across different industries. 

Tariffs remained a core issue—and, moving target—for procurement teams to grapple with in June. The tariff situation fluctuated depending on the day, but some of the key highlights included the U.S. terminating all trade talks with Canada as the month came to a close and the U.S. agreeing on a rare-earth magnet tariff arrangement with China.

While the anticipated, negative impact of tariffs hasn’t fully materialized, the uncertainty surrounding the tariffs continues to keep electronics buyers and their organizations on edge. 

“The flurry of news is the latest in several chaotic months of back-and-forth tariff announcements followed by subsequent adjustments,” NPR reports. “Imposing higher tariffs on goods from other countries was a major campaign promise of Trump, which he framed as an effort to bring manufacturing back to the U.S. and raise revenue. However, those goals conflict with each other, and tariffs also often burden consumers with higher prices.”

Closing the AI Trust Gap in Procurement

One broad trend that Fairmarkit has been tracking involves generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and the highs and lows of using this emerging tool in procurement. By definition, GenAI creates new content by generating new data samples that are similar to the training set. These advanced AI models learn patterns, structures and features from the input data, and then they can create content with similar characteristics.

In its 2025 AI in Procurement Index, Fairmarkit says procurement is “at a breaking point” right now, and that GenAI has become a “competitive necessity” for buyers. “Suppliers are already using it to gain an edge in negotiations,” the research firm explains, “and executives are pushing for faster adoption.” 

In some cases, procurement teams are getting caught between “ambition and internal reality” on the GenAI front, according to Fairmarkit, whose procurement survey picked up on a “disconnect” between bold executive goals and on-the-ground execution. For example, 43% of procurement professionals are concerned about making critical supplier decisions based on inaccurate or incomplete AI-generated data, while 39% worry that AI could automatically agree to unfavorable deals.

“Until procurement teams can close the trust gap,” Fairmarkit says, “this uneven playing field will only grow more costly.”

Big Bet on Digital

Also in June, Deloitte released the 2025 Global Chief Procurement Officer Survey, which emphasizes procurement’s “big bet on digital.” It says procurement is being asked to “to do more with less,” and that it’s under increased pressure from an inflationary global market and an emerging trade war—both of which make that goal harder to reach.

As organizations confront economic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and technological disruption, Deloitte says procurement teams are focused on:

• Improving margins via cost reduction and cost avoidance.
• Driving operational efficiency to do more with less.
• Undertaking digital transformation and utilizing GenAI to elevate procurement capabilities.
• Expanding organically to support revenue uplift in a potential stagflationary market.
• Enhancing risk management to keep supply lines flowing while meeting regulatory requirements.

When asked about the strategies that are expected to actually deliver the most value in 2025, most CPOs (41%) said they view digital transformation as both a driver for change and a key enabler of supplier renegotiations, supplier collaboration, spend consolidation, enhanced demand management and better supply chain resiliency. 

“Procurement is at an inflection point, and CPOs have a choice. Organizations that are placing bets on digital capabilities, especially GenAI and other emerging technologies, while coupling workforce transformation initiatives to embrace digital, are seeing returns on those bets,” Deloitte concludes. “With external challenges increasing more rapidly, investments in digital and talent now are more critical than ever for organizations to thrive.”