Japan will not import Ford F-150

In yet another episode of the trade war, former President of the United States, Donald Trump, stated that Japan would start importing large volumes of the pickup truck Ford F-150 as part of a new trade agreement. The statement, however, was promptly refuted by the automaker itself and by industry analysts, who consider the statement unlikely.

Ford denies Trump: Japan will not import Ford F-150

In an interview with CNBCTrump declared: “They’re taking our cars. They’re taking the beautiful Ford F-150, which does very well. And I’m sure it will do well there too, along with other great products.”

The statement, however, goes against the reality of the Japanese market, which historically prefers smaller, more economical vehicles.

Trump’s statement comes at a delicate time, when Japan’s chief negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, visits the US to ensure that the government honors the agreement that reduces tariffs on Japanese cars from 25% to 15%.

This reduction, according to Ford CEO Jim Farley, does not benefit the American automaker. On the contrary, Farley argues that Japan’s lower production costs and favorable exchange rate will make Japanese cars even cheaper in the U.S., hurting Ford’s competitiveness.

Ford estimates billion-dollar loss

Ford estimates that the tariffs have already cost the company around US$2 billion (around R$10.9 billion). This financial pressure has negatively impacted results, something that other automakers are also facing in the current scenario of commercial uncertainty.

Despite Trump’s statement, the reality is that the agreement benefits Japanese automakers and worsens the situation for Ford, which doesn’t see the F-150 being exported to Japan anytime soon.