The Japanese carmaker Honda has reported a 50% drop in quarterly profits as it counted the cost of Donald Trump’s tariffs and electric vehicle policies, even as it said the full impact would be less than its worst expectations.
The manufacturer’s operating profits fell by half to 244bn yen (£1.2bn) in the three months to June, according to financial results published on Wednesday. That was mainly because of a 124bn yen hit from tariffs, as well as 113bn yen in losses on electric car sales in the US.
The car industry has been among the worst hit by the US tariff chaos, as the US president has specifically targeted it in the hope of reviving American car manufacturing. Trump’s policies have undermined international and domestic manufacturers who import cars and parts into the US through supply chains that have long been globally integrated.