Reuters — 2025-09-08
Automotive Industry
Major automakers will showcase their latest models at Munich's car show on Monday as Europe's automotive sector faces crises ranging from U.S. tariff hikes to costly electrification and the expansion of Chinese automakers on their home turf.
Aside from a product blitz to counter Chinese models being pushed to European consumers, including by BYD, Changan and GAC, domestic firms will focus on lobbying to persuade the European Union to reconsider its 2035 ban on combustion-engine cars.
Attention will also be on U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on European-made cars.
Even if a U.S.-EU trade deal agreed in July goes ahead, European automakers would face a 15% tariff that could force them not to sell less profitable models in the U.S.
European automakers at the IAA Mobility show in Munich, running from September 9-12, also face sinking sales in China, the biggest single market for Volkswagen , BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
Meanwhile, auto executives and lobby groups are pushing hard for the EU's fossil-fuel car ban, which is up for review by the end of 2025, to be scrapped or changed.