Desperate major automaker mulls scrapping US factory plans due to Trump's tariffs

Major automaker Volkswagen has considered cancelling its plans for a US major factory over President Donald Trump's automotive tariffs, according to reports Monday.

Oliver Blume, CEO of the Volkswagen Group, said in an interview with Handelsblatt that in the first nine months of 2025 levies issued by the Trump administration had cost the company $2.5 billion and that the company needed to make cuts, Semafor reported.

After Trump returned to office, German investments in the US dropped 45% year-on-year in 2025, according to Reuters. The dollar's depreciation was considered a factor while German exports also declined.

Other recent political and economic factors have also come into play.

"After Trump warned at the World Economic Forum last week of possible further duties on Europe, growing global uncertainty over the stability of trade relationships pushed gold above $5,000 per ounce for the first time," according to Semafor.