Ford, GM To Witness 'Higher Demand' As American Carmakers Set To 'Reap The Fruit Of Protectionism,' Says Expert: Here's A List Of Potential Gainers And Losers From Trump Tariffs

Despite President Donald Trump‘s tariffs sending shockwaves through the stock market, one analyst believes the domestic automotive industry in the U.S. is poised for a surprising boost. Here is a list of potential beneficiaries and losers of the new trade policy.

What Happened: While the tariffs of U.S. trading partners have had a damaging effect on the stock market, they have also fueled the fear of a slowdown in the economy and a possible recession.

According to John Murillo, the chief dealing officer at a global fintech solutions provider for financial institutions, B2BROKER, Trump's tariffs preemptively target metals, cars, and high-tech imports into the U.S., which seemingly spells trouble, “specifically for these sectors.”

However, he goes on to add that the “devil is always hiding in the details,” and sees the protectionist measures as a silver lining for the American automotive sector, predicting increased demand due to reduced foreign competition.

“Since tariffs are imposed on foreign cars competing with U.S. cars for consumer preferences, it will be precisely the American automotive industry that reaps the fruit of this protectionism,” Murillo told Benzinga.

Murillo states that despite the initial negative reaction following a cut in dividends by the Ford Motor Co. F executives, “Ford and General Motors Co. GM will see higher demand on their production over time, which will offset all current inconveniences with reorientation for alternative foreign supply parts producers.”

“We must also not forget Donald Trump‘s bet on the American oil industry,” adds Murillo, stating that he will “zealously protect American businesses, and we know that conventional energy is the subject of his special focus.”

“He is expected to fight with big oil companies worldwide in every possible way, and this is very positive news for the U.S. oil stocks despite the current softness of oil prices,” which will especially benefit classic oil producers like Exxon Mobil Corp. XOM and Chevron Corp. CVX, according to Murillo.

Why It Matters: Tariffs are considered protectionist policies as they are taxes that a government levies on imported goods. The primary objective of tariffs is to protect domestic industries that produce the same or similar goods.

However, they could lead to an increase in the prices of goods as the cost of producing the goods domestically increases.

Murillo also highlights the companies that will lose out because of these policies in the long run.

“The most evident losers will be retail stocks, such as Costco Wholesale Corp. COST and Walmart Inc. WMT, which traditionally formed most of their margins by arbitraging Chinese wholesale versus U.S. domestic retail prices.”

“PC, server, and phone equipment manufacturers like HP Inc. HPQ, Cisco Systems Inc. CSCO, and Apple Inc. AAPL will also feel the heat because many essential parts have been delivered from China for decades,” he adds.

Stocks In Focus	YTD Performance	One Year Performance
Ford Motor Co. F	-9.95%	-35.82%
General Motors Co. GM	-17.31%	-5.03%
Exxon Mobil Corp. XOM	-6.09%	-16.84%
Chevron Corp. CVX	-6.67%	-15.48%
Costco Wholesale Corp. COST	-0.12%	26.46%
Walmart Inc. WMT	-9.12%	36.80%
HP Inc. HPQ	-32.61%	-26.99%
Cisco Systems Inc. CSCO	-10.00%	6.36%
Apple Inc. AAPL	-29.29%	1.62%

Price Action: Notably, on Tuesday, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY decreased by 1.57% to $496.48, while the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF QQQ saw a decline of 1.80% to $416.06, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Following Tuesday’s trading session, the Nasdaq 100 is in bear market territory, having fallen 23.10% from its prior peak of 22,222.61. The S&P 500 also saw a significant decline of 18.95% from its Feb. 19 high of 6,147.43, while the Dow Jones was down 16.48% from its 52-week high.

Wednesday’s futures market indicated further potential losses, with Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 futures all trading lower.

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