US President Donald Trump has warned legendary motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson of unprecedented tariffs if the company moves part of its production abroad.
"A Harley-Davidson should never be built in another country – never! Their employees and customers are already very angry at them. If they move, watch, it will be the beginning of the end – they surrendered, they quit! The Aura will be gone and they will be taxed like never before!" Trump tweeted.
"Early this year Harley-Davidson said they would move much of their plant operations in Kansas City to Thailand," Trump continued. "That was long before Tariffs were announced. Hence, they were just using Tariffs/Trade War as an excuse."
On Monday, Harley-Davidson announced it is moving some production overseas because of retaliatory measures from the EU against Trump’s duties on steel and aluminum from the bloc. No production will be moving to Europe as a result of the tariffs, the company said. Harley's overseas manufacturing plants are in Brazil, India, Australia and Thailand.
EU tariffs will add $2,200 to the cost of an average motorcycle, Harley-Davidson said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Tariffs will add $30-45 million to the company’s expenses this year, amounting to “an immediate and lasting detrimental impact” to its business.
Trump responded on Monday by saying he was "surprised" by Harley's decision adding that the company’s move comes despite the fact that he “fought hard for them.” Last year, he publicly thanked the motorcycle maker for "building things in America" and criticized other companies for moving production overseas.
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