German carmakers report boom in US sales ahead of expected tariffs

German car manufacturers Volkswagen and BMW have reported booming sales in the United States, hours before a massive round of tariffs on EU goods is expected to be announced by US President Donald Trump.

Volkswagen said on Wednesday that its first-quarter sales jumped by 7.1% to 87,915 vehicles, driven by good performance for the Taos, Jetta and ID.4 models.

BMW also gained momentum in the US during the first three months of the year.

The Bavarian company sold 87,615 cars under its core BMW brand, a 3.7% increase compared to the previous year. It also saw an impressive result for its electric vehicles, with sales up by more than 25%.

Volkswagen subsidiary Audi saw sales drop by 3% compared to the first quarter of 2024, although March sales were up 8%.

The results indicate that long-threatened duties on imports from the EU may have led to pre-emptive purchases by US consumers.

The United States currently imposes a 2.5% tariff on passenger cars from the EU, although levies are 25% on pick-ups and heavy vehicles.

Trump has announced additional tariffs of 25% on cars from the EU, which are set to take effect after he delivers a speech at the White House later on Wednesday.

The US president is seeking to use tariffs to pressure trade partners, reduce the country's chronic trade deficit with major blocs such as the EU and China and bring production back to the United States.

Experts doubt whether this will succeed, citing higher production costs domestically and the resulting inflationary pressures.

Although China is the most important single market for German carmakers overall, they predominantly produce vehicles for the Chinese market on location.

The trade links with the US from within the EU are more extensive. A decline in sales in the US could therefore hit European factories hard.