On Wall Street, the Dow, the tech-heavy Nasdaq and the broad-based S&P 500 all slipped, with General Motors giving up 7.4 percent and Ford dipping 3.9 percent.
In Tokyo, Toyota – the world’s top-selling carmaker – fell two percent. Honda shed 2.5 percent, Nissan was off 1.7 percent and Mazda dropped six percent.
Seoul-listed Hyundai gave up more than four percent.
Among European auto firms, Volkswagen shed 1.3 percent, Porsche lost 2.6 percent, Mercedes dropped 2.7 percent and BMW fell 2.5 percent, helping to push the Frankfurt DAX index down 0.7 percent.
Jeep maker Stellantis lost more than four percent. India’s Tata Motors, which exports Jaguars and Land Rovers to the United States, also lost ground – leading analysts to speculate on where markets may be headed.
“The trade war has escalated, and unsurprisingly, German carmakers are leading the declines or are among the biggest decliners today,” said StoneX Group analyst Fawad Razaqzada.
Jochen Stanzl, chief market analyst with CMC Markets, added: “While investors see a fair chance for successful negotiations between the European Union and the US in the coming weeks, many prefer to wait for these discussions rather than speculate in advance.”
“What we’re going to be doing is a 25 percent tariff on all cars that are not made in the United States,” Trump said on Wednesday.
The rate, which takes effect on April 3 at 12:01 am affects foreign-made cars and light trucks imported into America. The tariffs also apply to auto parts.
About half of the cars sold in the United States are made within the country. Of the imported vehicles, about half come from Mexico and Canada, with Japan, South Korea and Germany also major suppliers.
Japan’s government called the tariffs “extremely regrettable” while Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called it a “direct attack” on his country’s workers.
French Finance Minister Eric Lombard warned: “The only solution for the European Union will be to raise tariffs on American products in response.”
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.4 percent to 42,299, while the broad-based S&P 500 Index lost 0.3 percent to 5,693. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 0.5 percent to 17,804. (AFP)
