In a letter submitted to President Donald Trump, the Auto Care Association urged the administration to reconsider imposing tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum due to unintended negative consequences it may have on the U.S. economy and the auto care industry.
Last week, Trump issued a presidential proclamation imposing a 25 percent tariff on steel imports and a 10 percent tariff on aluminum imports after a Department of Commerce report, called Section 232 National Security Investigation of Imports of Steel and Aluminum, was released, citing the amount of U.S. steel imports as a threat to U.S. national security and detrimental to the domestic steel and aluminum industry.
“Based on the fact that there are few parts necessary for the upkeep of a vehicle that do not contain significant amounts of steel and aluminum, this action will have a significant negative impact throughout the supply chain, including many small medium and small businesses and their employees that comprise the auto care industry,” said Bill Hanvey, president and CEO, Auto Care Association. “While we are grateful that our trading partners, Canada and Mexico, are currently exempt, it is our view that these tariffs will quickly become a tax on the repair and maintenance of vehicles, a tax that will ultimately be paid for in higher repair prices by the American car owner.”
The association said in the letter that it applauds the administration’s efforts to rebalance trade and protect the U.S. steel industry and workers, but it is concerned that global import tariffs on steel and aluminum would have a devastating effect on steel-consuming manufacturers downstream, including the auto care industry. Tariffs artificially raise the prices of steel, causing modifications to tightly integrated global supply chains and companies to be less competitive in global markets, the association explained.
To see the full letter, click here.
