Motoring giant’s huge U-turn on Trump

One of the world’s biggest car companies has bent to Donald Trump’s will on tariffs, opening up a whole new stage of the trade war.

Motoring giant Jaguar Land Rover has resumed vehicle shipments to the US after a near month-long pause triggered by newly imposed tariffs on imported cars.

The first shipments of vehicles bound for the US departed Britain last Wednesday.

The pause came in response to US President Donald Trump’s 25 per cent tariff on imported cars, which took effect on April 3.

JLR paused US shipments in early April as it assessed how to manage the financial impact of the new tariff.

The automaker has not yet disclosed how it plans to offset the increased costs but industry analysts believe the company may absorb some of the tariff expenses or pass them onto consumers, which may lead to higher prices for models like the Range Rover Evoque and entry-level Range Rovers.

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Motoring giant Jaguar Land Rover has resumed vehicle shipments to the US after a near month-long pause triggered by newly imposed tariffs on imported cars. Picture: AFP

The US remains a crucial market for JLR, accounting for approximately 25 per cent of its annual vehicle output.

“As we work to address the new US trading terms with our business partners, we are enacting our planned short-term actions, as we develop our mid- to long-term plans. We will give a further update at our full year results in May,” JLR spokesperson told Reuters.

President Trump said last week that he intends to soften the impact of the tariff through a new executive order combining tariff credits with exemptions on certain materials and components.

However, automakers still face significant cost increases.

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US President Donald Trump approach to auto tariffs is very much a work in progress. Picture: AFP

According to the Anderson Economic Group, the tariffs could add between $2,000 and $12,000 to the price of imported vehicles, depending on the manufacturing origin and model.

Other British automakers are also adapting to the new trade climate, such as Aston Martin, which has said it will limit US shipments and work through existing dealer inventory while splitting tariff costs with customers.

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Originally published as Motoring giant’s huge U-turn on Trump