TMTPOST -- U.S. President Donald Trump could grant exemptions from 25% tariffs on auto parts to give automakers more time for manufacturing transition to his countries.
Credit：China Central Television
"I'm looking at something to help some of the car companies, where they're switching to parts that were made in Canada, Mexico and other places," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "And they need a little bit of time, because they're going to make them here."
When asked about possible exemptions, Trump said: “I don’t change my mind, but I’m flexible.” . He then added he had helped Apple Inc.CEO Tim Cook recently. “I speak to Tim Cook. I helped Tim Cook recently and that whole business recently,” said the president.
Trump late March signed an executive proclamation to impose a 25% tariff on all automobile imports, effective on eastern daylight time April 3 at 12:01 a.m. He said that the tariff hit “all cars that not made in the United States”, and if the cars are “made in the United States, it’s absolutely no tariff.”The president confirmed on April 2 the auto tariffs entered effect as scheduled.
The exemptions, if they are materialized could be a major reprieve for automakers. Wall Street and automotive analysts expected the auto tariffs would lead to a drop in vehicle sales in the millions, higher new and used vehicle prices, and increased costs of more than $100 billion for the industry.
Shares of three auto giants jumped following Trump’s remarks. U.S.-listed shares of Stellantis closed 5.6% higher on Monday. Ford Motor and General Motors and rose around 4.1% and 3.5%, respectively.
The Trump administration has exempted from tariffs on certain products including semiconductors. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced in an updated guidance late Friday that the government has exempted smartphones, computers and other electronic products from its reciprocal tariffs.The document stated that the exemption applies to electronic products entering the United States after April 5, and reciprocal tariffs already paid can be refunded upon request.
The White House said on Saturday the exemptions were made because Trump wants to ensure that companies have time to move production to the U.S. Trump “has made it clear America cannot rely on China to manufacture critical technologies such as semiconductors, chips, smartphones, and laptops”, said White House deputy press secretary Kush Desai in a statement.
The 20 product categories listed in the CBP guidelines are apparently exempt from the 125% tariff imposed by Trump on Chinese imports and the 10% baseline tariff on imports from other countries.
However, Trump and his officials on Sunday indicated the recent exemptions from semiconductors and other imported products from reciprocal tariffs are temporary.
“NOBODY is getting ‘off the hook’ for the unfair Trade Balances, and Non Monetary Tariff Barriers, that other Countries have used against us, especially not China which, by far, treats us the worst!” Trump wrote in a post on his social media Truth Social.
Trump also posted that U.S. government officials were "taking a look at Semiconductors and the WHOLE ELECTRONICS SUPPLY CHAIN in the upcoming National Security Tariff Investigations." The president on Sunday spoke with reporters officials would discuss tariffs on products like iPhones and tablets with companies "because you have to show a certain flexibility, nobody should be so rigid."
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Sunday indicated separate tariffs for electronics are “coming soon.” “They’re exempt from the reciprocal tariffs, but they’re included in the semiconductor tariffs, which are coming in probably a month or two,” Lutnick said in an ABC News interview. “So this is not like a permanent sort of exemption. (Trump’s) just clarifying that these are not available to be negotiated away by countries”
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Sunday that the exemptions are “not really an exception,” even though the executive order Trump signed concerning the exemptions is titled in part “Clarification of Exceptions.” “What happened is, this type of supply chain moved from the tariff regime for the global tariff, the reciprocal tariff, and it moved to the national security tariff regime,” Greer said in an CBC News interview.
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