Hyundai Motor Company has resumed exports to Canada from its US operations in the last two months, after shipments were halted at the height of the trade dispute between the two North American neighbours following Canada’s announcement in April that it would impose retaliatory 25% tariffs on US imports. This was in response to similar tariffs announced by the US in March.
According to local reports, Hyundai’s Alabama plant exported almost 1,900 vehicles to Canada in August, in line with average monthly export volumes last year and up from 450 units in July, after shipments were halted in May.
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While the two countries so far have failed to resolve their trade dispute, Hyundai decided to resume exports to Canada as part of its “inventory optimization,” according to a source close to the company. Canada’s Prime Minister, Mark Carney, previously stated that “while Canada has withdrawn retaliatory tariffs on most US products, tariffs on automobiles, steel, and aluminum will be maintained at the current rate of 25%.”
Hyundai’s sales in Canada, including its Genesis brand, rose by 20% year-on-year to 13,610 units in August, in part due to the resumption of exports from the US. The US-made Tucson was the company’s best-selling model in Canada last month with 3,450 deliveries, according to reports, which was 59% higher than the same month last year.
To minimize the impact of the higher tariffs on its sales in the region, Hyundai said it plans to switch Tucson production for sale in Canada to its Mexican plant, while production of the model for sale in the US will be shifted from Mexico to its Alabama plant.
