US President Donald Trump shocked the global auto sector by announcing the imposition of 25% customs duties on all auto imports and auto parts to the United States, starting from the second of April next to be permanent.
It is likely that the application of new fees for a long time may raise the cost of buying an American medium -class car for thousands of dollars and hinders the production of vehicles in North America completely.
This is due to the concerted production operations between the auto companies in Canada, Mexico and the United States over the past three decades.
Data from the research company “Global Data” indicates that nearly half of the cars sold in the United States last year were imported.
Car shars declined
After Trump’s decision, the shares of General Motors (the giant of the American auto producer) decreased 8% in trading after the market closed, and the shares of Ford and Westelants listed in the American market fell by about 4.5% each, and in Japan, the shares of Toyota Motor, Honda Motor and Hyundai Motor fell by 3 to 4%.
Tesla (electric car manufacturer) shares, which manufactures all its cars sold in the United States locally, but imports some components equivalent to 1.3%.
Trump said that the customs duties announced that may negatively affect Tesla or perhaps it, adding that the company’s CEO and his close ally, Elon Musk, did not give him any advice on customs duties on cars.
In a post on the X’s communication site after the decision was announced, Musk said that customs duties will have an impact on Tesla.
“This will affect the prices of Tesla auto parts imported from other countries … The effect on the cost is not simple,” he said in a separate post.
Trump’s customs duties and threats associated with their imposition have caused their second term in a state of fog for companies, and sparked turmoil in global markets, and on Wednesday, he reaffirmed that he is expected to pay these customs duties to increase their investments in the United States instead of Canada or Mexico.
“The customs duties imposed today will increase the cost of producing and selling cars in the United States, which will eventually lead to high prices, reduce the options available to consumers, and decline in the manufacturing sector jobs in the United States,” said Auto Drive America, which is the largest foreign auto manufacturer such as Honda, Hyundai, Toyota and Volkswagen.
North America’s auto companies have enjoyed a large -scale manufacturer since 1994, and the 2020 agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada has been set by Trump new bases aimed at increasing the production of components in the region.
After imposing 25% customs duties on Mexico and Canada in early March, Trump granted a month for cars produced according to the terms of the agreement, which had a positive impact on American companies.
However, the new rules do not involve the extension of this deadline.
The White House added that car importers under the agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada will have the opportunity to ratify their locally made components, so that the fees are applied only to non -American components.
Before announcing the new customs duties, Cox Automotive, a company specialized in car services, expected the decision to add $ 3,000 to the cost of cars made in the United States, and 6 thousand dollars to the cost of cars produced in Canada or Mexico.
And if customs duties are applied, Cox expects a defect in car production in North America “almost completely” by mid -April, which will lead to production of 20,000 cars per day, or about 30%.
The United Automobile Workers Syndicate, which represents factory workers in the three major car manufacturers in Detroit, praised Trump’s decision.
“Thanks to these customs duties, thousands of good wage jobs in the auto industry can be returned to the working class throughout the United States within a few months,” the union’s president, Sean Fine, said in a statement.
Religion and threat
European Commission President Ursula von der Line condemned the new customs duties on imported cars to the United States, announced by Trump.
She said in a statement: “I express mystery to the United States’ decision to impose customs duties on European exports of cars,” and these fees were described as “bad for business, and worse for both consumers in the United States and the European Union.”
The President of the Commission added that the European Union “will continue to seek negotiating solutions, while preserving its economic interests.”
She continued: “As a major commercial force and a strong society that includes 27 member states, we will work together to protect our workers, companies and consumers throughout the European Union.” She noted that Trump’s recent announcement and “other measures that the United States intends to take in the coming days” will now be evaluated.
A threat to Canada and Europe
For his part, Trump threatened to increase customs duties on the European Union and Canada if they both work together to “inflict economic damage in the United States.”
“If the European Union works with Canada to inflict economic damage to the United States, we will impose large customs duties, much larger than currently planned, both on both to protect the best friend of these two countries at all,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
European Commission President Ursula von der Line described the move as “bad for companies, and the most worse for consumers”, while Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said customs duties are “a direct attack” on Canadian workers and Canada is considering taking counter measures.
The European Union said it would postpone the first group of counter -measures to mid -April.
European response
French Finance Minister Eric Lombard said Thursday that Trump’s plan to impose customs duties on imported cars and light trucks starting next week, “very bad news,” adding that the only solution now is for the European Union to raise customs duties.
Lombard, who was speaking to Radio France Antir, added that he hoped that he would be able to discuss reducing these drawings soon with the American side, adding that the trade war will not lead to anything.
German Economy Minister Robert Habik called on the European Union to a decisive response to customs duties on the cars announced by the United States, while avoiding a cycle of customs duties.
“It is now important for the European Union to provide a decisive response to customs duties, it must be clear that we will not surrender to the United States. Power and self -confidence are required … At the same time, we will support the European Commission to continue negotiating a solution with the United States that would prevent a cycle of customs duties.”
He added that the customs duties eventually harm the United States, the European Union and the Global Trade as a whole.
For her part, British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves said today that Britain does not want to escalate the trade war with the United States and works extensively with Washington to obtain a customs duties exemption.
“We are not in a position in which we want to do anything to escalate these commercial wars … commercial wars are not in the interest of anyone.”
China’s comment
The Chinese Foreign Ministry said today, Thursday, that the US customs duties to be imposed on imported cars violate the rules of the World Trade Organization and will not help Washington to solve its own problems.
A ministry spokesman said in a periodic press conference that no country can achieve prosperity by imposing additional customs duties.
South Korea
The South Korean Minister of Industry said on Thursday that he expected the auto sector in South Korea to face “great difficulties” when the American customs duties enter the cars announced by President Donald Trump into force.
He added that the government intends to take emergency measures in response by April.
