Auto stocks rise as Trump says he wants to ‘help’ some car companies

DETROIT — Shares of automakers closed higher Monday after President Donald Trump said he is looking to “help some of the car companies” amid his 25% auto tariffs.

The automakers “need a little bit of time” to move their production to the U.S., Trump said during a meeting Monday with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office.

“I’m looking for something to help some of the car companies, where they’re switching to parts that were made in Canada, Mexico and other places, and they need a little bit of time because they’re going to make them here,” Trump said without elaborating on the potential plans. “But they need a little bit of time, so I’m talking about things like that.”

The comments pushed stocks such as Ford Motor, General Motors and Chrysler parent Stellantis higher, with each rising between 3% and 6% after previously trading flat or negative. Shares of Rivian Automotive closed Monday up by 4.9%, while shares of Tesla were level.

Shares of other automakers such as Toyota Motor, Honda Motor and EV startup Lucid Group closed up by between 1.5% and 2%.

A senior automotive industry executive described Trump’s comments as “some recognition that this is getting tough for the industry.”

Trump’s remarks Monday come nearly two weeks after he implemented automotive tariffs on imported vehicles of 25% on April 3.

Despite reducing tariffs on most countries last week and giving tech companies such as Apple exemptions from the levies over the weekend, the automotive tariffs have remained in effect.

Automakers have responded to the tariffs in a variety of ways. Manufacturers that are mostly domestic, such as Ford and Stellantis, have announced temporary deals for employee pricing, while others, such as British carmaker Jaguar Land Rover, have ceased U.S. shipments. Hyundai Motor also has said it would not raise prices for at least two months to ease consumer concerns.

GM has been strategically increasing some U.S. production, including upping output at a pickup truck plant in Indiana as well as canceling previously announced downtime next month at a facility in Tennessee.

“The company continues to update and revise production schedules as part of their standard process of evaluating and managing vehicle inventory as needed,” plant leadership said in a message to workers viewed by CNBC. “The previously announced downtime for the week of May 12th is being rescinded, which means full production in Vehicle Assembly will run as normal.”

A GM spokesman on Monday confirmed the change in plans for the Tennessee plant, which produces several Cadillac crossovers.