President Trump at Tuesday’s joint session of Congress promised growth in the U.S. auto industry from tariffs he imposed on foreign countries including Canada, China and Mexico.
Mr. Trump, who predicted a U.S. auto industry “boom,” said he spoke to the three major auto manufacturers earlier in the day and they were “excited” about his plans.
“In fact, already, numerous car companies have announced that they will be building massive automobile plants in America,” Mr. Trump said. “With Honda just announcing a new plant in Indiana, one of the largest anywhere in the world.”
Mr. Trump said foreign companies that refuse to make their products in the U.S. will be forced to pay a tariff and in some cases “a rather large one.”
“Other countries have used tariffs against us for decades, and now it’s our turn to start using them against those other countries, on average, the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico and Canada,” he said.
“India charges U.S. auto tariffs higher than 100%. China’s average Tariff on our products is twice what we charge them, and South Korea’s average tariff is four times higher. Think of that four times higher. And we give so much help militarily and in so many other ways to South Korea.”
Mr. Trump on Tuesday imposed 25% tariffs on imported goods from Canada and Mexico, and he doubled tariffs on goods from China to 20%.
Earlier, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., which will spend at least $100 billion on five semiconductor chip factories in the U.S., mainly in Arizona, to avoid the looming tariffs.
