BMW Appeals to United States Trade Minister in Customs Dispute

The automaker BMW is appealing in a letter to the US Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, for it to refrain from imposing punitive tariffs on imports of vehicles. "The national production of automobiles has no connection with the national security of the United States", it is said in the statement, which reports the "Welt am Sonntag". The letter was submitted as part of an investigation by the US Department of Commerce.

The investigation is to determine whether US President Donald Trump can impose tariffs on foreign-owned cars to protect the national security of the United States. The deadline for comments has expired on Friday, and a hearing in Washington will take place on July 19 and 20. "It seems that the threat of collecting these tariffs is intended to achieve certain economic objectives," the letter says. In its five-page letter, BMW lists not only the arguments against customs duties and trade barriers in general, but also describes the German company's commitment to the United States, which operates a plant in Spartanburg in Caroline from the south. The Munich automaker is contributing to US economic output, directly and indirectly, around 15.8 billion US dollars (13.7 billion euros), according to the newspaper in the statement. More than 120,000 Americans have jobs because BMW has invested nearly $ 9 billion in its Spartanburg facility in recent years.

Photo: BMW, via dts News Agency