Sika CEO: US construction optimism hit by Trump's trade policy

ZURICH, April 15 (Reuters) - Sika SIKA.S Chief Executive Thomas Hasler said optimism in parts of the U.S. construction industry has fallen in the wake of President Donald Trump's unpredictable trade policies.

"We had a very strong start to the year and people were very optimistic about infrastructure investments and reshoring," Hasler told Reuters after the construction chemicals company reported its first-quarter sales on Tuesday.

But the mood changed following Trump's talk of tariffs on Mexico and Canada, which created uncertainty among U.S. companies, he said.

"Everything started to slow down," said Hasler. "Some of the projects have been pushed out, projects that were indicated to launch soon have been put on the backburner."