[ad_1]
(Reuters) – Steel and aluminum tariffs imposed by the Trump administration cost Ford Motor Co (F.N) about a billion dollars in profits, said Wednesday its general manager, while Honda Motor Co (7267.T) said that rising steel prices have resulted in "new costs" of several hundred million dollars.
PHOTO: Workers are assembling vehicles at a Changan Ford plant, a joint venture between Changan Automobile and Ford Motor Company, in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, China, on February 22, 2017. REUTERS / Stringer / File Photo
"For Ford, metal prices have brought in about $ 1 billion," said CEO James Hackett at a conference in Bloomberg, New York. If it lasts longer, it will do more damage.
Hackett did not specify the period covered by the $ 1 billion, but a spokesman said the automaker's CEO was referring to Ford's internal forecast of pricing costs in 2018 and 2019.
The increase in steel prices in the United States has resulted in additional annual costs of several hundred million dollars, "said Rick Schostek, executive vice president of Honda North America. the United States is domestically produced.
Honda also faces retaliatory tariffs from Canada and China on lawnmowers built in North Carolina and transmissions in Georgia.
Honda has not raised prices for US vehicles because of higher costs, but the problem is "definitely a part of our thinking in the future," Schostek told reporters after the hearing.
While the vast majority of steel and aluminum that Ford uses for production in the United States is manufactured in the interior of the country, it said that tariffs could lead to an increase in prices of domestic commodities.
Ford's shares fell 0.7% to $ 9.32 in the afternoon.
The United States said in March that it would impose a 25% tariff on imported steel and a 10% tariff on imported aluminum from most countries. Rates have allowed US producers to raise their prices.
US President Donald Trump's steel and aluminum prices will boost car prices by raising commodity costs for manufacturers, manufacturers warned.
During the presidential campaign, Trump denigrated US trade deficits at the expense of US manufacturers and workers.
Since taking office, Trump has pursued a rate escalation policy that he believes will reverse this trend, including an increasingly bitter trade war with China.
The automotive industry is preparing for a new tariff cycle. On May 23, Trump ordered a national security investigation under "Section 232" on the desirability of imposing a 25% tariff on imported vehicles and auto parts. 39 European Union and other trading partners.
The section, included in the US Trade Expansion Act, allows the president to adjust imports through tariffs if they threaten national security.
At a briefing in Detroit on Wednesday, officials at the IHS data analyst Markit said that if the Trump administration imposed global tariffs under Article 232, this would have significant consequences for the industry. American automobile and the economy in general.
IHS Markit estimates that full implementation of the 232 tariffs would add between $ 1,800 and $ 5,700 to the price of a new vehicle and reduce auto sales from about 2.2 million units in 2020 to 14.5 million units. 17 million vehicles this year.
The new tariffs would also cost about 300,000 auto jobs in the country's factories and concessions and reduce US economic growth by 1.1 points to 2.2 percent, IHS said.
In July, Ford lowered its earnings guidance for the year due to lower sales and commercial tariffs on China, as well as its troubled business in Europe.
The difficulties faced by the automaker in boosting sales in China have not shown signs of end of existence despite measures taken to market new products.
Report by Nick Carey in Detroit and David Shepardson in Washington; additional report by Sanjana Shivdas in Bangalore; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and David Gregorio
Source link
