By Nora Eckert
Detroit, USA (Reuters) – Ford Motor is uploading the prices of three of its models produced in Mexico from May 2, becoming one of the first large car manufacturers to adjust catalog values after the tariffs of US president, Donald Trump.
Electric SUV prices Mustang Mach-E, Maverick’s truck and Bronco Sport will rise up to 2,000 dollars in some models, according to a notice sent to the dealers reviewed by Reuters.
Ford said this week that the commercial war would add about 2.5 billion dollars in costs by 2025, but hopes to reduce that exposure by about 1,000 million.
His general rival Motors said last week that it was expected that tariffs would cost him between 4,000 million and 5,000 million dollars after the imposition of strong taxes on foreign imports of cars, but that he hoped to compensate for at least 30%.
A Ford spokesman said the price increase will affect vehicles made after May 2, which will reach the concessionaires at the end of June. He added that the increases in values reflect the “usual” mid -year price measures, “combined with some tariffs we face.”
“We have not impacts the total cost of tariffs to our clients,” he added.
Ford shares fell less than 1% in morning operations. The car manufacturer is still running a discount program through the weekend of July 4 in many of its models, said the spokesman.
Trump tariffs have unleashed weeks of uncertainty throughout the car sector, and the main manufacturers in the United States and Europe have retired forecasts, have changed production and caused companies to stop plants.
-After weeks of rejection by the car industry, Trump softened his tariffs on imports of foreign car parts to give loans to manufacturers so it occurs in the United States and avoid the double imposition of tariffs on the inputs used in car manufacturing.
However, the White House has not terminated a 25% tariff on the 8 million vehicles that the United States imports annually.
Analysts have affirmed that US cars sales could fall into more than one million vehicles a year if tariffs were maintained.
Ford is in a better position to fall tariffs than some of its competitors due to its solid production base in the United States.
The Dearborn manufacturer, in the state of Michigan, assembles 79% of its vehicles sold in the United States in the country, compared to 53% of GM, said Barclays analysts in a note.
Even so, Ford imports from Mexico one of its most affordable and popular vehicles, the Maverick. Most of the great American car manufacturers face important price increases in their cheapest models produced in the country.
Ford and GM also face important levies on imports from China and South Korea, respectively.
GM estimates that the costs of its Korean imports amount to about 2,000 million dollars, while Ford did not want to specify the expenses derived from the importation of China vehicles.
(Nora Eckert report; edited in Spanish by Manuel Farías)
