Auto industry tariffs are doing what now? 24 hours of White House confusion
Over the past 24 hours, the auto industry has experienced some of the most extreme whiplash in the saga of the Trump administration's tariffs, ending on Wednesday night with two contradicting policy proposals coming out of the White House: China may be granted exemptions on auto part tariffs, but Canada's car tariffs might increase.
Last night, the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump was considering slashing his 145 percent tariffs on China, lowering some of them potentially to 50 percent - a report that may have assuaged rattled investors. It seemed especially credible given Trump himself hinted at decreases during a press event earlier that day, saying: "145% is too high. It will come down substantially." Yet Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent denied the WSJ report the next morning, saying the U.S. would not lower tariffs unilaterally. "This is the equivalent of an embargo, and a break between the two countries in trade does not suit anyone's interests," he told reporters.
Within hours, however, the Financial Times reported that Trump was indeed planning to eliminate his recently-imposed tariffs on steel, aluminum, and car parts imported from China, and the White House conf …