In a fresh escalation of his trade policy, U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to impose 25% tariffs on imported cars, along with similar or even higher duties on pharmaceuticals and semiconductors.
Speaking at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, Trump emphasized that these measures aim to counter unfair trade practices and encourage companies to shift manufacturing operations to the United States.
Since taking office in January, Trump has aggressively pursued tariffs against some of America’s largest trading partners. His latest announcement follows previous tariff pledges, including a 10% levy on all Chinese imports and 25% duties on steel and aluminum.
On the automobile industry, Trump stated that tariffs would likely be set at 25%, with final details expected to be announced by April 2. When asked about potential levies on pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, he made it clear: “It’ll be 25 percent and higher, and it’ll go very substantially higher over (the) course of a year.”
Trump framed the tariffs as an incentive for foreign manufacturers to invest in U.S. production facilities, rather than a punishment. According to him, several major companies have already reached out, expressing interest in relocating their operations to the U.S.
“We want to give them time to come in,” Trump explained. “When they come into the United States and they have their plant or factory here, there is no tariff. So we want to give them a little bit of a chance.”
While Trump presents these tariffs as a way to protect American industry, many experts warn that U.S. consumers and businesses may ultimately bear the brunt of these costs. Tariffs on imports often lead to higher prices, affecting both companies that rely on foreign goods and consumers who purchase them.
In the automobile sector, for example, around 50% of the cars sold in the U.S. are already manufactured domestically.
Among car imports, roughly half come from Mexico and Canada, while Japan, South Korea, and Germany are also key suppliers. If tariffs are imposed, these costs could be passed down to American consumers in the form of higher car prices.