Trump Endorses Call For Harley-Davidson Boycott

US President Donald Trump has once again slammed Harley-Davidson endorsing calls for a boycott of the American motorcycle manufacturer over the brand's plans to move production of its motorcycles out of the country. Harley-Davidson has said that the company would shift some production out of the US in order to mitigate the impact of European Union tariffs targeting the company's motorcycles. The tit-for-tat tariffs announced by the EU were in response to US duties on steel and aluminium imported from the EU. In a latest tweet, President Trump has once again endorsed a boycott call for Harley-Davidson.

"Many Harley-Davidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas. Great! Most other companies are coming in our direction, including Harley competitors. A really bad move! US will soon have a level playing field, or better," Trumph said in a Twitter post.

Many @harleydavidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas. Great! Most other companies are coming in our direction, including Harley competitors. A really bad move! U.S. will soon have a level playing field, or better.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 12, 2018

Also Read: Trump Threatens To Bring Other Motorcycle Brands Into The US

Harley-Davidson has not commented on Trump's remarks over the past few months over the dispute. Harley-Davidson has forecast that the EU tariffs will cost the company between $30 million to $45 million (between Rs. 2-3.15 crore) for the remainder of 2018 and $90 million and $100 million (nearly Rs. 7 crore) for the full year. Harley-Davidson has maintained that no production will actually be moved to Europe, but the company is considering increasing overseas production in the existing plants in Brazil, India and Australia. Last year, Harley-Davidson has announced that it will build a plant in Thailand as well, to meet demands of foreign markets, even as sales are slowing down in the US.

Also Read: Harley-Davidson Announces 250-500 cc Motorcycle For Asia

Harley-Davidson has announced three new motorcycle models which will be launched by 2020, including an adventure touring model, which is a complete breakaway from the traditional heritage cruisers the brand is known for. Also in the pipeline is a new, small displacement model, which will be built in collaboration with an Asian partner, and targeted primarily at emerging markets and specifically, India. The small displacement model will be a 250-500 cc model and is expected to be introduced by 2022.