Eliminating tariffs on U.S. auto imports would do little for General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co., but would lend
a major boost to Germany’s BMW AG and Daimler AG. SUVs assembled by the German carmakers in the American
South dominate the models exported to Europe from the U.S.

BMW for example is projected to sell nearly 70,000 X3 SUVs in Europe made in its South Carolina factory this year,
according to data from LMC Automotive. Compare that to roughly 15,000 units of Tesla Inc.’s Model S sedan, which
LMC, an industry data consultancy, projects will be the top-selling model in Europe assembled in the U.S. by an American
automaker.

Trump has ordered his Commerce Department to investigate whether car imports imperil national security, under the
same provision he invoked to impose global tariffs on steel and aluminum earlier this year.

The findings of the auto study are due by February, though the president could decide to act before then. This week, Trump
threatened Canada with auto tariffs if the country failed to join his trade deal with Mexico to replace Nafta.

One of the issues to be examined is the presence of European car makers in the US.  Many have factories here so they can avoid the tariffs.  Some on them brought in workers from Poland, Slovenia, and Croatia rather than hire US workers.  If we drop the tariffs, European cars made in US plants could more cheaply be shipped to EU countries, further increasing the imbalance in European vs. American brands sold there.

Free trade isn't just about tariffs.  It's also about being able to compete with countries that don't pay workers or provide comparable benefits and retirement packages as US makers.  Labor costs and taxes keep US car makers from being able to compete with lower-priced foreign cars.


https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbsn-on-assignment-foreign-workers-used-to-build-auto-plants-in-us/

To me it sounds like we would be losing out.  Because he's right, EU likes EU cars (Benz, BMW, etc..).  And more EU cars get shipped here than US cars (Ford, Chevy, etc...) that get shipped over there.

So we would be losing money if we called it even Steven.  I'm not an economist so I didn't research it fully.  But just the above makes sense in my head.

Same goes with Asian countries probably.  When I was in Taiwan, I didn't see 1 US car.  Lots of Toyota's.  Maybe a few EU cars.

So if my above statement is correct then the fake news would spin a title like "Trump hates free trade".

As said above, the issue of free trade is way beyond tariffs.  Tariffs is what is most discussed because it generally affects the bottom line pretty quickly.  However in order to get the bigger picture, you have to look into how things changed as a result of previous arrangements and also be able to try to envision how the market will respond.  I can't remember the details, but the issue of tariffs was brought up on the subject of tariffs applies to washing machines.  Essentially, LG and other asian products were thriving and threatening companies like Kenmore, GE, etc.  The tariffs were applied to imports, to LG started to product their products in the US and they hired mostly foreign workers, so initially somewhat of a backfire as it didn't level anything.  There are also companies that get into the finer details to find ways around.  Like I believe the current tariff discussion is looking toward setting a minimum percentage of parts produced in the US to avoid just the product being assembled in the US and get around the import tariffs, fees, etc.  It's super complex and these companies are damn smart! 

Anyways, like many discussion with Trump, will just have to wait and see.  Though I have to applaud his efforts in trying to improve things in favor of the US, as opposed to failures to do anything by previous administrations as they gave in to the threats by EU, China, etc, which appears not were largely them blowing smoke.  Their economies are just as vulnerable and need to play nice as well with trading partners.  Just that now, Trump is challenging that balance.

And this is the problem with the fake news.  They only report that "Trump doesn't want to deal".  Vs. explaining why and hows.

It seems only one person in this forum falls for the fake news ... again and again and again ...

 

It seems only one person in this forum falls for the fake news ... again and again and again ...

 

To me it sounds like we would be losing out.  Because he's right, EU likes EU cars (Benz, BMW, etc..).  And more EU cars get shipped here than US cars (Ford, Chevy, etc...) that get shipped over there.

So we would be losing money if we called it even Steven.  I'm not an economist so I didn't research it fully.  But just the above makes sense in my head.

Same goes with Asian countries probably.  When I was in Taiwan, I didn't see 1 US car.  Lots of Toyota's.  Maybe a few EU cars.

So if my above statement is correct then the fake news would spin a title like "Trump hates free trade".

Trump's statement is either intentionally left open-ended by the author to imply the he means to impose tarriffs of his own on European automobiles or Trump really hasn't stated what his intent is. While imposing tarriffs on European cars can certainly be included in the list of things he could have meant by his statement,  it is by no means exclusive. He is an experienced negotiator and may be using the opportunity to leverage other aspects of trade where other European protectionist measures are in place like parts manufacturing, jobs, etc. It may become apparent what Trump is shooting in the coming days. Let's see what shakes out.

and his "research" never shows how wrong he is...

One of the issues to be examined is the presence of European car makers in the US.  Many have factories here so they can avoid the tariffs.  Some on them brought in workers from Poland, Slovenia, and Croatia rather than hire US workers.  If we drop the tariffs, European cars made in US plants could more cheaply be shipped to EU countries, further increasing the imbalance in European vs. American brands sold there.

Free trade isn't just about tariffs.  It's also about being able to compete with countries that don't pay workers or provide comparable benefits and retirement packages as US makers.  Labor costs and taxes keep US car makers from being able to compete with lower-priced foreign cars.


https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbsn-on-assignment-foreign-workers-used-to-build-auto-plants-in-us/

I started to discussion.

Another part of it is that a lot of American car companies are not producing as many cars with the European market in mind. We tend to have larger vehicles with higher gas consumption and Europeans don't seem as interested in those. I know the same is true for Japan, with their higher gas costs and they're much narrower roads American companies just don't have many models that are practical in Japan.

It's almost a form of subsidizing industry.

And what do you think other countries are doing in attempts to make their products more “exportable”?  That’s what the US is up against.