German car exports to the US have dropped by almost 14% during the first three quarters of 2025, according to a study viewed by Reuters.
This makes the automotive sector the most affected segment of German industry in the US President Donald Trump’s trade war.
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Following an agreement between Washington and Brussels, the US established a 15% baseline tariff on European vehicles from 1 August, which is lower than the 25% rate initially proposed by President Trump. This new tariff is in addition to an existing 2.5% levy.
German engineering firms are also said to have experienced reduced exports to the US, with shipments in this sector slumping by 9.5% in the first nine months of this year.
Across all sectors, German exports to the US dipped 7.8% year over year (YoY) over the first three quarters of 2025. This is in contrast to average growth of around 5% in the same periods from 2016 through 2024.
Data from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) shows that German vehicle shipments to the US increased by 14.7% YoY in the first quarter.
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By GlobalDataHowever, after the US imposed a 25% tariff on vehicle imports from the EU in April, exports dropped by 23.5% in April and May, according to Xinhua.
The first-quarter increase was largely attributed to buyers in the US placing orders ahead of the anticipated tariff hike.
After the new duties came into effect on 3 April, German car exports declined more than expected.
The US is Germany’s largest trading partner in the automotive sector.
According to the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA), last year, Germany exported vehicles valued at €36.8bn to the US and imported €7.9bn from the US.
In 2024, nearly 450,000 vehicles were shipped from Germany to the US.
In March this year, VDA stated that German makers produced more than 844,000 vehicles in the US in 2024, with about 50% exported globally.
Last month, Reuters reported that trade talks between the US and EU have placed tech regulation tariffs at the forefront, with the US requesting modifications to EU digital sector rules as a condition for decreasing tariffs on aluminium and steel imports from the bloc.
