Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Global automotive stocks tumbled on Monday following U.S. President Donald Trump’s imposition of 25% tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico, and on incoming goods from China.
In U.S. pre-market trading — and as of the time of writing — shares of General Motors are falling 8%, while Ford is dropping over 5%. Tesla’s stock price fell nearly 4% to $390, also impacted by a 63% plunge in January sales in France.
The tariffs on Canada take effect on Tuesday, while the timeline for Mexico and China remains uncertain.
Asked about tariffs on the European Union, President Donald Trump said last Friday that he would “absolutely” impose tariffs on imports. Just like Brazil’s President Lula da Silva, the EU also warned that it would retaliate if tariffs were imposed.
“We’ll see how things work out. It might happen with them, but it will definitely happen with the European Union, I can tell you that,” the U.S. President said.
Tesla
Tesla shares are falling nearly 4% in early Monday after having closed last week at $404 per share. Since 2024’s low, the stock has soared over 250% and reached a new all time record of $488 in December.
GM
GM, one of the most affected companies by the Mexico tariffs, saw its shares plunge 8% to $45.40 on early Monday. Since the peak at over $61 in late November, the stock has fallen about 25%.
The Chinese carmakers Zeekr, Nio, and XPeng — which do not (yet) sell in the U.S. market — saw their shares drop 2%, 3% and 2%, respectively.
In January, Donald Trump issued an executive order aimed at rolling back pro-electric vehicle (EV) policies. The order seeks to eliminate state emissions rules that limit gasoline-powered car sales, end subsidies for EVs, and potentially scrap the $7,500 federal tax credit for EV buyers.
Trump directed federal agencies to halt disbursements tied to former President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which include funding for EVs and clean energy projects.
