Trump misses his own deadline to impose ‘Section 232’ auto tariffs on foreign-made cars and parts
- Six months ago Trump threatened to impose a 25 per cent tax on imported vehicles, but he took no action November 14, the deadline imposed by his administration
The clock has run out on President Donald Trump’s “Section 232” tariffs on imports of foreign-made cars and auto parts, after he failed to announce a decision by a self-imposed deadline, trade law experts say.
The US administration may have to find other means if Trump wants to tax European or Japanese car imports, a key part of the US president’s pledge to make America’s trade relationships more fair, the experts say.
Their argument centres on the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, a US law aimed at protecting America’s cold war-era defence industrial base. Section 232 of that act lays out how a US president can tax specific imports if the Department of Commerce deems them a threat to national security.
The Trump administration launched its Section 232 probe of foreign autos in May 2018. Six months ago Trump agreed with an administration study that some imported vehicles and components are “weakening our internal economy” and could harm national security. He has threatened to tax them by as much as 25 per cent.
But he took no action on November 14, the deadline established by the act to take action, puzzling carmakers.
