U.S. President Donald Trump has said that if Tesla were to build a factory in India to circumvent that country’s tariffs, it would be “unfair” to the U.S., in an interview with Fox News which aired on Tuesday.
Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk has long criticised India for having import tariffs of around 100% on EVs which protect local automakers such as Tata Motors in the world’s third largest auto market, where EV adoption is still at a nascent stage.
Trump said it is “impossible” for Musk to sell a car in the South Asian nation.
“Every country in the world takes advantage of us, and they do it with tariffs… It is impossible to sell a car, practically, in, as an example, India,” he said.
Reuters reported on Tuesday that Tesla has selected locations for two showrooms in the Indian cities of New Delhi and Mumbai, and posted job ads for 13 mid-level roles in India. It does not currently manufacture any vehicles in India.
Trump said it would be “unfair” to the U.S. if Musk did decide to build a factory there.
“Now, if he built the factory in India, that’s okay, but that’s unfair to us. It’s very unfair,” Trump said in the interview.
India’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump’s plans for reciprocal tariffs on every country that taxes U.S. imports have raised the risk of a global trade war with American friends and foes.
