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Donald Trump has fulfilled his threat and has launched a torpedo against the waterline of the European automobile industry. The former US president announced the application of a 25% tariff on all cars that are not manufactured in the United States (with some exceptions for Mexico and Canada)
This is 51% of the vehicles sold in the gigantic American market, which will now receive this surcharge that will immediately leave them out of competition. Trump's goal is to attract foreign investment by force for the North American automotive industry.
The Republican president also aims to generate revenue to implement one of the measures that elevated him to the White House: tax cuts
Europe (and Spain) at a disadvantage
The measure will affect "imported enger vehicles (sedans, SUVs, crossovers, vans and minivans) as well as light trucks. It will also apply to some components of these vehicles, specifically "engines, transmissions, powertrain parts and electrical components"... although the list could be increased "if necessary", the White House specifies.
It goes without saying that this measure - the effect of which will have to be seen in the US - directly and very negatively affects the European automotive industry. In fact, the European manufacturers' association, ACEA, has already reacted to Trump's challenge.
"The imposition of tariffs will damage the global automotive industry... but also the American one," they argue. "European car manufacturers have been investing in the United States for decades, creating jobs, fostering economic growth and generating huge tax revenues for the US government," said its director general, Sigrid de Vries
Likewise, manufacturers are asking President Trump to consider the "negative impact of tariffs not only on global automakers, but also on U.S. domestic manufacturing." ACEA anticipates that this additional tax on cars will "harm American consumers" as it will not only make vehicles more expensive as a whole, but will also affect their components, and this will be ed on to the price of cars produced... in the United States itself
And this will affect not only local consumers, but also the competitiveness of the cars manufactured in America and also those exported from the US. "European manufacturers export between 50% and 60% of the vehicles they manufacture in the US, which makes a significant positive contribution to the US trade balance," they recall.
Spain does not export cars to the US
Although one might think that the fact that the European automotive industry is affected by this measure would also mean that Spain would be one of the most affected countries (it is the second largest continental manufacturer of vehicles), the reality is that this is not the case.
Why Spain did not export any vehicles to the United States in 2024... although the case of components is another story.