Shares of some automakers including General Motors (GM)and Stellantis (STLA) picked up a head of steam on Monday on reports that Donald Trump will potentially narrow the focus of future tariffs and shelve sectoral levies that could have seen 25% slapped on all car imports.
The Big Three – Ford (F) Chevy-maker GM and Dodge-owner STLA – all rose in premarket trading on Monday following reports over the weekend that indicated the auto sector may be spared from sector-specific tariffs. Stellantis shares listed in Milan (IT:STLAM) rose by about 1%. Tesla (TSLA) also jumped by about 4% in premarket trade after rallying 5% on Friday.
Liberation Day Coming
April 2nd will be “Liberation Day” for the US, when Trump will unveil “reciprocal tariffs”, but sector-specific levies on automakers, pharmaceuticals and semiconductors – which had been touted last month – may no longer be on the table.
White House officials told Bloomberg that some countries will be spared reciprocal tariffs, and that Trump was not currently planning to announce separate, sectoral-specific tariffs at the Liberation Day event.
Speaking the Oval Office, Trump said: “I don’t change. But the word flexibility is an important word. Sometimes it’s flexibility. So there’ll be flexibility, but basically it’s reciprocal.”
The target of reciprocal action will be narrowed to the so-called “dirty 15” trading partners, as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the countries who account for most of the U.S.’s foreign trade. The question is whether shelving sectoral tariffs on autos or chips is enough to dampen the impact of potentially punitive tariff rates on entire countries. In particular, the Detroit Big Three are worried about the impact of tariffs on Mexico and Canada, from which they won a temporary reprieve earlier this month.
April 2nd may well see carmakers exposed once again to these tariffs, as it is thought that reciprocal tariffs will land on countries included in a Federal Register notice last month, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Union, India, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Vietnam and others. All of the Big Three have exposure to Mexico and Canada.
Is GM a Good Stock to Buy?
On Wall Street, GM has a Moderate Buy rating based on ten Buys, four Holds and one Sell. The average GM price target of $63.53 implies about 27% upside.
See more GM analyst ratings
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