OAN Staff James Meyers
10:55 AM – Monday, March 24, 2025
Car manufacturer Hyundai plans to invest $20 billion in the United States, including into a new steel plant in Louisiana, adding to the list of major foreign businesses set to move more of its operations to America in order to avoid tariffs.
The car titan is expected to construct the $5.8 billion plant near Donaldsonville, with the new building set to create 5,5000 direct and indirect jobs, according to CBS News.
President Donald Trump will make the big announcement alongside Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry (R-La.) at the White House on Monday, while emphasizing that this will be the first Hyundai steel plant to move overseas, according to the New York Post.
Meanwhile, the South Korean car manufacturer has factories in Alabama and Georgia, but the steel plant would be its first overseas steel facility and supply steel to the company’s factories in the nearby states.
Trump announced a 25% tariff on aluminum and steel in February, on all foreign-made metals but said those produced in the U.S. would not have to deal with any impact.
“I’m simplifying our tariffs and steel and aluminum so that everyone can understand exactly what it means. It’s 25%, without exceptions or exemptions,” Trump said in a statement.
“And that’s all countries, no matter where it comes from, all countries. If it’s made in the United States of America, there is no tariff, zero,” he said.
The Hyundai announcement comes amid Trump’s global steel tariff threats and his highly touted April 2nd deadline for putting in place other tariffs, along with other incentives for foreign companies to move to the U.S.
South Korea is among the top 10 countries with trade deficits with the U.S. that favors them. The Asian nation will most likely be targeted in the Trump administration’s April 2nd tariff global announcement.
“April 2nd is going to be liberation day for America. We’ve been ripped off by every country in the world, friend and foe,” Trump said Friday about the upcoming tariff announcements.
“Unless the tariff or non-tariff barriers are equalized, or the U.S. has higher tariffs, the tariffs will go into effect,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said.
According to Axios, Hyundai CEO José Muñoz told the outlet before Trump became president that the company would have to come to the U.S., due to the president’s promised tariff policies at the time.
“We decided to invest big time in America as the most important market,” Muñoz said.
“So the best way for us to navigate tariffs is to increase localization.”
Other companies such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Japan’s Softbank have made similar moves in recent months to avoid the tariffs.
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