The White House has drafted an ultimatum to Japan and the European Union regarding trade in autos and auto parts: agree to limits on exports to the U.S. within 180 days or face tariffs. The ultimatum was reported by Bloomberg, citing a draft version of the executive order it had seen.
A Trump administration representative could not be reached for comment.
President Trump has long threatened to slap 25% tariffs on autos and auto parts. A Commerce Department report delivered to the White House in February, but not made public, was widely assumed to give the administration a rationale to impose tariffs under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which allows tariffs to protect national security.
A decision on the department’s report was expected by Saturday, 90 days after it was forwarded to the White House. Earlier on Wednesday word leaked out that the White House would instead invoke a section of the act that would allow it to delay the decision for up to six months.
Trump has said that the decision on whether to initiate the tariffs would hinge on the outcome of trade negotiations with the European Union, a major auto exporter. “We are negotiating with them. If we do not make a deal, we’ll do the tariffs,” Trump told reporters in February.
