In addition to sending stocks plummeting, President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war looks to be lousy news for San Antonio’s Toyota truck plant, the Express-News reports.
The Japanese automaker said its U.S. sales are down 6% from a year ago as consumer confidence crumbles due to Trump’s tariffs and disruptive economic policies, the daily reports. That drop included sales of the Tundra full-size pickup and the Sequoia SUV, both produced at the Alamo City plant.
Sales of the factory’s primary vehicle, the Tundra, fell about 4% to 10,781 vehicles, according to the Express-News. However, the pickup’s hybrid version took an even bigger hit, plummeting 50.7% to 1,686 units. Meanwhile, the hybrid-only Sequoia declined by 3.5% to 1,830 vehicles sold.
San Antonio’s Toyota plant, which opened in 2006, employs more than 3,700 people, according to company officials. Roughly 20 on-site suppliers have another 5,600 workers on the payroll.
The city, Bexar County and the State of Texas have flowed millions of dollars in economic incentives to Toyota to attract the plant and facilitate its continued expansion.
Auto producers have been bracing for the fallout from Trump’s tariffs, which they warn will devastate U.S. sales. U.S. auto plants rely heavily on components produced in Canada and Mexico, economists warn, and that means higher trade taxes will raise car prices and crater consumer confidence.
The Trump White House’s long-threatened 25% tariffs on most Canadian and Mexican goods took effect Tuesday. The Republican president also threatened to double tariffs he imposed on China last month from 10% to 20%.
Anderson Economic Group CEO Patrick Anderson told industry officials in February that tariff costs will drive up automakers’ production costs by $4,000 to $10,000 per vehicle, National Public Radio reports.
“Let’s be real honest,” Ford CEO Jim Farley told an investor conference last month. “Long term, a 25% tariff across the Mexico and Canadian border will blow a hole in the U.S. industry that we have never seen.”
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This article appears in Feb 19-25, 2025.
