U.S. President Donald Trump recently outlined plans to enact tariffs on copper—a move that would impact prices for new vehicles and automotive components.
According to Autoblog, Trump said during a cabinet meeting this past Tuesday that he’s looking to implement a 50% tariff on copper, in addition to other sector-targeted tariffs. Notably, while many metals used in electronics come from China, the largest supplier of copper to the U.S. is Chile.
Copper is found in nearly all electronic devices, and has a heavy presence in automotive components such as wiring harnesses, radios, alternators, cooling fans, and power seat, window, and mirror motors.
Prices for copper in the commodities markets have already rose by 38% this year. Following Trump’s comments, prices spiked 15% by the end of the day. The tariffs would be expected to add hundreds of dollars to the cost of a typical vehicle.
“There’s a couple hundred pounds of copper in the typical vehicle,” said Sam Abuelsamid, lead analyst with Telemetry Research. “It’s in wiring harnesses, of course, in connectors, batteries and alternators and there are motors everywhere.”
