Tariffs on auto imports have spiked under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that former President Donald Trump negotiated to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement, the Office of the United States Trade Representative said Monday.
“The percentage of vehicles imported from Canada or Mexico for which duties were paid increased from 0.5 percent (a total value of $517 million) in 2019 to 8.2 percent (a total value of $8.9 billion) in 2023,” USTR said in a congressionally mandated report on the operation of the USMCA auto provisions.
The Trump administration negotiated rules requiring cars made in Canada and Mexico to contain much higher amounts of North American content to qualify for duty-free entry into the United States.
However, the USTR report shows those rules are so tough automakers are deciding to pay the 2.5 percent tariff on an increasing number of cars rather than comply with the provisions.
