Mercedes is set to “localize” a “core segment” vehicle line to its plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, by 2027, the automaker announced Thursday.
The German company said it wanted to strengthen “our ties to the North American market” as President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs prompt some companies to relocate to the United States.
“We are getting even closer to the U.S. customer by localizing a core segment model in Tuscaloosa, strengthening our ties to the North American market where a range of Mercedes-Benz vehicles including the GLE and GLS models have their roots,” Jason Hoff, CEO of Mercedes-Benz North America, said in a press release.
The relocation is likely to please Trump and his administration, which issued tariffs with the goal of driving jobs into the U.S. One of the main questions surrounding the tariffs is whether consumers could sustain a potential rise in prices while the administration is working on deals with foreign countries and companies.
A spokesperson for Mercedes-Benz declined to comment to CNBC about whether the new vehicle line in Alabama was a result of Trump’s tariffs, citing a “local-for-local strategy” of manufacturing vehicles where it sells them.
Mercedes-Benz employs “more than 6,000 people” in the U.S. and has produced 4.5 million vehicles from the Tuscaloosa plant over the past 28 years. They said the Tuscaloosa operation is the “global hub for our SUVs.”
In a likely attempt to reduce prices from Trump’s tariffs, the company said they are “sourcing our local demand for steel and aluminum almost exclusively in the United States.”
Trump recently eased tariffs on automakers when he visited Michigan on Tuesday, saying he “wanted to help them during this little transition, short-term.”
General Motors and other companies expressed their thanks to Trump over the move. “We’re grateful to President Trump for his support of the US automotive industry and the millions of Americans who depend on us,” GM CEO Mary Barra said in a statement to the BBC.
“We appreciate the productive conversations with the President and his Administration and look forward to continuing to work together,” she added.
Ford added that the decision “help[s] mitigate the impact of tariffs on automakers, suppliers and consumers.”
“We will continue to work closely with the administration in support of the president’s vision for a healthy and growing auto industry in America,” the company’s statement added.
TRUMP PRAISES ‘UNBELIEVABLE’ RUBIO MINUTES BEFORE GIVING HIM SURPRISE NEW JOB
Trump is set to speak at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Thursday, not long after Mercedes’s announcement.
It’s possible he will mention the automaker’s move.