Thinking of buying a new Peugeot, Saab, or Audi? You may want to wait a while. On Friday, May Day, interestingly enough, President Trump took to his Truth Social platform to announce that the European Union's auto industry is about to be hit with another round of tariffs on imports into the United States. President Trump cites the EU not complying with the existing trade deal to justify the move.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 1, 2026
The president writes:
I am pleased to announce that, based on the fact the European Union is not complying with our fully agreed to Trade Deal, next week I will be increasing Tariffs charged to the European Union for Cars and Trucks coming into the United States. The Tariff will be increased to 25%. It is fully understood and agreed that, if they produce Cars and Trucks in U.S.A. Plants, there will be NO TARIFF. Many Automobile and Truck Plants are currently under construction, with over 100 Billion Dollars being invested, A RECORD in the History of Car and Truck Manufacturing. These Plants, staffed with American Workers, will be opening soon — There has never been anything like what is happening in America today! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP
President Trump wields tariffs like a hammer, and the EU can scarcely say that this move was some big surprise; this is President Trump's primary trade tactic.
Speaking with the press on Friday as he was departing for Florida, the president offered a few more details.
Asked by reporters on Friday about the increase in import taxes as he departed the White House for Florida, Trump said the EU was not “as usual” adhering to last year’s trade framework, without detailing the source of the tension. He added that he believed the shift to higher tariffs “forces them to move their factory production much faster” to the U.S.
Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had agreed to the trade deal last July. It set a tariff ceiling of 15% on most goods, though the Supreme Court this year ruled against the legal authority that Trump had used to charge that tax. This left Trump looking for substitute authorities, and his administration has imposed a 10% tax while investigating trade imbalances and national security issues to put in new tariffs to make up for lost revenues.
As of this writing, there hasn't been any response from the EU.
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There are four major EU manufacturers already building in the United States:
- The German company BMW operates the BMW US Manufacturing Company in South Carolina.
- The German company Mercedes-Benz operated two plants in the USA, in Vance, Alabama, and in Ladson, South Carolina.
- The German Volkswagen Group operates a plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and is building another in Blythewood, South Carolina.
- Finally, the Swedish company Volvo operates a plant in Ridgeville, South Carolina.
So, the president isn't exactly asking for something unprecedented. And this is, of course, part and parcel of his "America First" agenda.
Buying American, of course, is seldom a bad idea.
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