Donald Trump received the president of Stellantis John Elkann on Monday night, who requests lighter customs tariffs for cars imported from Mexico and Canada, the company confirmed on Tuesday. John Elkann, who directs through Stellantis the Jeep Jeep, Dodge or RAM, met with the US president in Washington “to continue the dialogue with the president and his administration at this time for the future of the US automotive industry,” said a Stellantis spokesman, confirming information on the NBC channel.
Taxes worth 25% must enter into force on April 3 in all cars that are not held in the United States. Did John Elkann ask for a new break when applying these taxes after March? No, “said Donald Trump on Monday night after the meeting. According to the US president, they discussed “some of the problems they have with the environment (sic) and that we will settle.” According to Stellantis, the discussion focused on “the importance of the competitiveness of the automotive sector of North America” and “concern for the accessibility of our products made in the United States and the implications to demand.”
A 10% increase in prices of certain models in the United States
Manufacturers fear that customs tasks, which should push them to produce more in the United States, will force them to strongly increase the price of vehicles, chasing buyers of concessions. Stellantis recalled on Tuesday that the three main American manufacturers Stellantis, Ford and General Motors (GM) had expressed their common position at the end of March: if they are favorable to customs tariffs in vehicle imports, which will make the models of their competitors more expensive, they ask that Canada and Mexico, where they produce a lot, are protected.
The Italian-American John Elkann, heir to the Agnelli family, founder of Fiat, had already met Donald Trump during his inauguration in January. With the announcement of difficulties in the US market in 2024, followed by the customs duties of Donald Trump, the Stellantis action has been at its lowest level since its creation in 2021 with the fusion of Fiat-Chrysler and Peugeot-Citroën, at 10.33 EURES on Tuesday in the Paris Stock Exchange (-60% more than a year). The Italian brand Ferrari, of which John Elkann is also the president, has already announced that he increases the sales prices of some of his models in the United States, by 10% maximum.
Source: BFM TV
