The US is [already unable](https://www.bcg.com/publications/2023/addressing-the-engineering-talent-shortage) to fill about a third of its more than 400,000 new engineer roles created each year. The UK will see 20% of its engineers retire by 2030 — leaving a shortfall of 1 million jobs. Japan will see a deficit of 700,000 in that period.
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From Bloomberg News reporters [Akshat Rathi](https://www.bloomberg.com/authors/AUdOobfNzkQ/akshat-rathi)**,** [Olivia Rudgard](https://www.bloomberg.com/authors/AWBnLoYN_tg/olivia-rudgard) and [Josh Saul](https://www.bloomberg.com/authors/ATn-QRa9KAg/josh-saul):
The US is [already unable](https://www.bcg.com/publications/2023/addressing-the-engineering-talent-shortage) to fill about a third of its more than 400,000 new engineer roles created each year. The UK will see 20% of its engineers retire by 2030 — leaving a shortfall of 1 million jobs. Japan will see a deficit of 700,000 in that period.
These can have big impacts on the economy. In Britain, the shortage of engineers could wipe 5% from its gross domestic product, according to the think tank Stonehaven. In the US, the lack of skilled workers will hold back President Donald Trump’s [attempts to increase manufacturing](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-04-04/trump-s-tariff-driven-us-factory-push-ignores-labor-shortage), even if the tariff regime stabilizes and businesses get ready to invest. Trump’s [attacks on US universities’](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-23/trump-attack-on-harvard-students-reverberates-around-the-world) international students, who tend to study engineering in a [greater proportion](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/education/news/most-popular-subjects-among-international-students-in-the-u-s-/articleshow/116916685.cms) than domestic students, will likely further sap the supply of skilled workers.
That’s fine because there ain’t enough copper either.