Honda Moves Civic Production Plans to Indiana from Mexico to Avoid Trump’s Tariffs: Report; Trump Responds to Tariff Fallout, Tells Companies They Won’t Be Affected if They Move to US

Honda moves Civic production plans to Indiana from Mexico to avoid Trump’s tariffs: report

As Canada and Mexico braced for 25% tariffs on Tuesday, and China for another 10%, Honda became one of the first companies to cave – scrapping plans to produce its new Civic in Mexico in favor of Indiana, according to a report.

The Japanese auto giant had initially planned to manufacture the next-generation Civic in Guanajuato, Mexico, starting in November 2027, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Now, Honda plans to manufacture the new Civic in Indiana, starting in May 2028 — churning out around 210,000 vehicles each year, a source told the outlet.

Honda’s capitulation reflects the immediate impact of Trump’s pledge to return manufacturing to the US by imposing tariffs on rival nations, experts told The Post.

“I think Trump has been effective at using tariffs, and the threat of tariffs, to get more made-in-America jobs here,” Stephen Moore, economist and senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation, told The Post. “This was a victory for Trump.

”Investors on Wall Street, however, were not taking any victory laps.

All three major indexes finished sharply lower. The blue-chip Dow dove 649 points, or 1.5%, while the S&P 500 fell 105, or 1.8% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq sank 497, or 2.8%.

Honda was initially eyeing making the Civic in Mexico or Canada because of cheaper production costs – before deciding on Indiana, Reuters reported.

The company declined to comment on the report, but said it has flexibility to “produce products in each region based on customer needs and market conditions.

”Other automakers that already have facilities in the US may also follow Honda’s lead by expanding their production capabilities, or re-opening closed factories, Jonathan Ernest, economics professor at Case Western Reserve University, told The Post.

BMW, for example, which has its largest US plant in South Carolina, could ramp up production at existing sites on a dime, he said.

Volkswagen, meanwhile, is reportedly weighing US production sites for its Audi and Porsche brands to avoid proposed tariffs on the European Union, according to a German news outlet.

In January, Stellantis reversed plans to shutter its Illinois facility after its chairman, John Elkann, met with Trump and promised to boost US manufacturing jobs.

But even if companies move manufacturing to the US to avoid the 25% levy, higher labor and production costs could be passed along to the consumer. —>READ MORE HERE

Trump responds to tariff fallout, tells companies they won’t be affected if they move to US:

President Trump doubled down Tuesday on his decision to impose a 25% tariff on Canada and Mexico a day earlier, reminding his followers on Truth Social that “IF COMPANIES MOVE TO THE UNITED STATES, THERE ARE NO TARIFFS!!!”

In a series of morning posts, Trump also expressed his frustration with Canadian bank policies and mused about Mexican drug busts after imposing the levies in protest of fentanyl imports that killed one in every 1,000 Americans over the past five years.

“Canada doesn’t allow American Banks to do business in Canada, but their banks flood the American Market. Oh, that seems fair to me, doesn’t it?” Trump wrote in another Truth Social post.

The Canadian Bankers Association said last month that 16 US banks have subsidiaries in Canada, such as Capital One and Wells Fargo, though Ottawa has significant regulatory barriers for foreign financial institutions seeking to enter the market.

In another post, the president shared a screenshot of a New York Times article that quoted a Mexican cartel leader who “says he’s trying to figure our how to protect his family in case the American military strikes inside Mexico.”

Later in the morning, the president fired back at Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who had called the tariffs a “dumb thing to do,” by saying, in reference to his statements that Canada should become the 51st US state: “Please explain to Governor Trudeau, of Canada, that when he puts on a Retaliatory Tariff on the U.S., our Reciprocal Tariff will immediately increase by a like amount!” — an apparent refernce to tariffs on agricultural imports due to take effect April 2.

The president matter-of-factly said Monday that the tariffs on Canada and Mexico, as well as a new 20% duty on goods from fentanyl hub China, would proceed after delaying their implementation last month.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent admitted in an interview Tuesday that “there’s going to be a transition period” after the tariffs took effect. —>READ MORE HERE

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