Looming Mexico Tariffs Make OEMs Uneasy

May 31, 2019
President Donald Trump threatened a 5-percent tariff on all goods coming from Mexico, which would ramp up to 25 percent by October.

President Donald Trump threatened a 5-percent tariff on all goods coming from Mexico, which would ramp up to 25 percent by October.

That could hit automakers hard. General Motors, for example, is the largest player in Mexico. GM imports 13 percent of its vehicles from Mexico, CNBC reported. Fiat Chrysler and Ford import 18 percent and 17 percent, respectively. In total, vehicles and auto parts represented $93.3 billion in imports in 2018.

Auto parts suppliers are also poised to suffer from the tariffs. Detroit Free Press auto industry reporter Phoebe Wall Howard Tweeted that companies like Aptiv, Delphi, Lear and Visteon derive up to 37 percent of their global revenue from Mexico. She cited a Deutsche Bank analyst.

Industry experts say that automakers are almost certain to pass additional costs on to the consumer.

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