Editor’s note: This story has been updated with details about the automotive tariff rate, along with duties on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.
President Donald Trump said he is planning to enact automotive tariffs “around April 2,” in response to a reporter’s question on Friday. Trump did not expand on which countries would be impacted nor how much the tariffs would be.
The comments, which were captured in a Bloomberg video, came as he was signing an unrelated executive order. Trump said he initially slated the tariff to go into effect April 1, or April Fools’ Day, but decided to delay the plan since he is a “little superstitious.”
Trump noted that the incoming automotive tariffs will “be in the neighborhood of 25%,” per remarks made during a news conference Tuesday. The same tariff rate would be levied on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals, however, he did not mention a precise implementation timeline.
"It'll be 25% and higher and it'll go very substantially higher over the course of a year, but we want to give them time to come in because, as you know, when they come into the United States and they have their plant or factory here, there is no tariff," Trump said.
Automakers and parts suppliers have expressed concern about the impact higher tariffs would have on overall vehicle production costs, and have been strategizing to mitigate the higher duties.
The comments come amid a wave of other tariff threats from Trump.
Earlier this month, Trump signed an executive order to enact 25% tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum imports. While the impacts will differ by company, many automakers rely on imported steel and aluminum materials.
Meanwhile, the president ordered a 25% tariff on all imports from Mexico and Canada. While the tariffs were meant to go into effect Feb. 4, the U.S. decided to delay implementation until March 4 for both Canada and Mexico.
The move against the U.S.’s two largest trading partners would further “blow a hole” in the U.S. auto industry, Ford Motor Co. CEO Jim Farley said during a recent investor conference.
According to International Trade Administration data, 76% of the roughly 3.5 million vehicles manufactured in Mexico annually are imported into the U.S. In Canada, 93% of vehicles made in 2023 were transported to the U.S., per the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association. In 2024, Ford alone built more than 220,000 vehicles in Mexico. The automaker manufactured nearly 55,000 vehicles in Canada through Q3 2024.
Trump has also ordered “reciprocal tariffs” for all current and future U.S. trading partners, and ordered his administration to prepare a broader review of U.S. trade policy by April 1.
Max Garland contributed to this report.
