US President Donald Trump has been on the receiving end of criticism from Michigan auto and business groups as tariffs on automotive imports remain in effect.
What happened: The Trump administration announced a 90-day halt on multiple tariffs imposed on various US trade partners. The tariffs had sent the global stock markets into upheaval, with trillions of dollars being wiped off. The temporary halt has had a positive effect as global stocks surged higher.
However, the 25% tariffs on automotive imports remain in effect. "Michigan's signature industry and the supply chains and employees that sustain it will continue to endure the uncertainty and disruption of these fluctuating trade policies." The Detroit Regional Chamber said in an official statement.
The organization also criticized the administration's decision to impose tariffs on aluminum and steel, both of which are key components in producing vehicles.
Why It Matters: The automotive industry operates on a complex supply chain infrastructure and is dependent on imports to produce vehicles.
Michigan's Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer called on the administration to rethink its tariff strategy. "You can't just pull out the tariff hammer to swing at every problem without a clear, defined end goal," she said in a statement to the media.
The Trump administration also said that they were open to ‘company-specific' exemptions for larger US companies affected by the tariffs, “There are some that have been hard — there are some that, by the nature of the company, get hit a little bit harder, and we’ll take a look at that,” Trump said, though the president didn't specify if that would include car manufacturers.
Automotive tariffs have hit manufacturers hard, with Stellantis — the parent company of Chrysler and Jeep — scaling back on production in Canada and Mexico, and temporarily laying off over 900 employees in the US across various manufacturing plants.
Check out more of Benzinga’s Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.
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