Honda is seeking to transfer most of its automotive production in Mexico and Canada to the U.S., a new report says.
The Nikkei newspaper reported on Tuesday that the group hopes 90% of cars sold locally avoid new U.S. car tariffs.
Nikkei said the second largest automaker in Japan's sales program increased U.S. auto production by 30% in two to three years in response to President Donald Trump's decision to impose a 25% tax on imported cars.
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Honda declined to comment, saying the information was not announced by the company. However, the news is in line with reports before the new U.S. taxation took effect last month.
Reuters reported Honda Plan to produce its next-generation citizen hybrid in Indiana, USAnot Mexico, to avoid being hit by potential tariffs.
The United States was Honda's largest market last year, accounting for nearly 40% of global sales. The automaker sold 1.4 million cars in the U.S. last year, including the Acura model. It imports about two-fifths of cars from Canada or Mexico.
Honda has increased U.S. sales by 5% in the first three months of this year to nearly 352,000 vehicles.
According to Nikkei, the company will transfer production of CR-V SUVs from Canada to the United States and from HR-V SUVs in Mexico to the world's largest economy.
Honda is considering hiring more American workers to boost output, the newspaper said. Such steps will allow Honda to switch from two shifts to three transfer systems and expand production to weekends, Nikkei added.
- Jim Pollard's additional editor Reuters
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