Japanese Automakers Issue A Production Cut Warning

“We are concerned that the additional 25 percent import tariffs on automobiles, currently being considered by the Trump administration, will have negative consequences. If implemented, these tariffs will hurt both the U.S. and Japanese economies,” said Masanori Katayama, president of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA). “If implemented, significant production adjustments may occur,” he warned at a press briefing in Tokyo.

Japan has a major automotive industry, with brands such as Toyota, Lexus, Honda, Nissan, Mazda, Suzuki, Subaru, and Mitsubishi. The country exports many cars to the United States. This amounts to approximately 1.4 million vehicles per year.

Japanese ministers have approached their American counterparts to seek tariff exemptions for goods from Japan, but so far these requests have been rejected. Of Japan’s total exports to the US, worth the equivalent of 1.3 billion euros last year, about a third were cars.

• Also See: Volkswagen Fears That Trump’s Tariffs Will Have A Negative Impact