Donald Trump Tears Toyota Apart On Twitter For Planning Factory In Mexico
Donald Trump tore Toyota Motors apart on Twitter on Thursday. The president-elect threatened to impose a big fine on Toyota if it builds its cars at a plant in Mexico.
Donald trump threatened Toyota Motors on Twitter after discovering that the Japanese automaker is planning to build a new plant to manufacture Corolla cars for the U.S. market in Mexico, according to Fortune.
“Toyota Motor said will build a new plant in Baja, Mexico, to build Corolla cars for U.S. NO WAY! Build plant in U.S. or pay big border tax.”
Toyota Motors announced their plans to build the Mexican car factory back in April of 2015. The car company had no immediate comment for the media.
Shortly after Trump threatened Toyota on Twitter, the automakers’ American Depositary Receipts, its stock traded on the U.S. market, fell more than 0.5 percent down, or 59 cents, to $120.45 on the New York Stock Exchange at 3:15 p.m.
Toyota Motors President Akio Toyoda said in Japan on Thursday that Toyota has no immediate plans to halt production in Mexico on the car factory. Instead, he stated that the car company would wait until Donald Trump is inaugurated on January 20 before making any changes to their plans.
“We will consider our option as we see what policies the incoming president adopts.”
Other automakers have been called out by the United States’ future president for building cars in lower-cost factories in Mexico.
Pressure on Toyota rose as Ford Motor stopped their plans to build a $1.6 billion assembly plant in Mexico this week after Donald Trump slammed the investment. Ford Motors is said to be shifting production of small cars from Mexico to Michigan in the United States.
Donald Trump has also claimed that General Motors could become subject to hefty taxes on Mexico-made cars for the U.S. market.
The president-elect also said that he wants to renegotiate terms of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) signed with Canada and Mexico.
Toyota defended Donald Trump’s tweet, claiming in a company statement that Toyota “has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. for nearly 60 years.” Toyota said that their car production volume would not go down once the factory in Mexico is up and running.
Toyota also reminded the public in the statement about the fact that their investments total over $700 million in the United States manufacturing plants in Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, and West Virginia, according to CBS News.
“With more than $21.9 billion direct investment in the U.S., 10 manufacturing facilities, 1,500 dealerships and 136,000 employees, Toyota looks forward to collaborating with the Trump administration to serve in the best interests of consumers and the automotive industry.”
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Donald Trump’s tweets are having a significant on the stock market.
Other companies have folded on their plans based on Donald Trump’s claims. In December, Trump tweeted that the costs of the F-35 fighter jet were “out of control,” which sent the stock of its maker, Lockheed Martin, plummeting 4.4 percent.
Also in December, Trump pretty much tweeted the same thing about Boeing’s 747 Air Force One, which resulted in Boeing’s stock falling 1 percent.
Other companies that Donald Trump has blasted publicly include Macy’s, T-Mobile, and Amazon.
[Featured Image by Alex Wong/Staff/Getty Images]
