Donald Trump Wants to Keep German Luxury Car Makers Out
A short Tweet from US President Donald Trump is causing a lot of panic for German luxury car companies. The outspoken leader also singled out Mercedes-Benz in his statements.
Citing German magazine WirtschaftsWoche as source, Fortune said in their translation of the news that Trump is looking to ban German cars in the American soil. Unnamed diplomatic personalities close to French President Emmanuel Macron claimed Trump told his counterpart in France that he will be maintaining his trade policy “until no Mercedes models rolled on Fifth Avenue in New York.”
Although there was a special mention of Mercedes in his statement, it was reported that the decision would also affect other German automakers like Porsche and Volkswagen (including its Audi brand).
Earlier, Trump was pushing for heavy tariffs on car imports. It should be noted that under national security laws, up to 25% levies can be imposed. That resulted in the stocks of European and Asian car makers sliding down. The Wall Street Journal traced the move back to Trump.
Saving Domestic Jobs
“There will be big news coming soon for our great American Autoworkers. After many decades of losing your jobs to other countries, you have waited long enough!” the flamboyant president posted in Twitter last May 23.
There will be big news coming soon for our great American Autoworkers. After many decades of losing your jobs to other countries, you have waited long enough!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 23, 2018
Based on the US president’s Tweet, he is keeping out the foreign players in order to boost domestic jobs. US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross defended the move saying, “there is evidence suggesting that, for decades, imports from abroad have eroded our domestic auto industry.”
“When you walk down Fifth Avenue, everybody has a Mercedes-Benz parked in front of his house,” Trump said according to Wall Street Journal’s translation of the comments in Bild, another German magazine. “You were very unfair to the U.S.A. It isn’t mutual. How many Chevrolets do you see in Germany? Not many, maybe none, you don’t see anything at all over there. It’s a one-way street,” he added.