President Donald Trump said on Sunday he supported boycotts of American motorcycle manufacturer Harley Davidson on Sunday, after the company and Trump disagreed on certain tariffs imposed by the administration. “Many @harleydavidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas. Great! Most other companies are coming in our direction, including Harley competitors. A really bad move! U.S. will soon have a level playing field, or better,” Trump wrote in a Twitter post. The company, which is already affected by the administration’s 25% tax on steel and aluminum exported from the European Union, announced in June it would move production of bikes sold in Europe out of the U.S. as a result of the retaliatory steel tariffs imposed by the world’s largest trade bloc. Following the latest round of tariffs, the new duties on motorcycles imported to the EU increased to 31% from just 6%. Harley-Davidson said the tariffs would add about $2,200 to the cost of the average bike built in the U.S. and exported to the trading bloc. The iconic Wisconsin-based company announced late last month a new global growth plan aimed at revamping its U.S. business and expanding internationally. The company plans to invest up to $825 million as part of its “More Roads to Harley-Davidson” strategy, which it said could generate more than $1 billion in annual revenue in 2022 compared to 2017. Ticker Security Last Change Change % HOG HARLEY DAVIDSON 48.32 +0.35 +0.72% Harley also plans on introducing a modular 500cc to 1250cc middleweight platform of motorcycles starting in 2020, while also improving its Touring and Cruiser bikes. The company is developing a smaller displacement 250cc to 500cc motorcycle for emerging markets in Asia through a partnership with a manufacturer in the region, and will launch its first electric bike in 2019 with more models to follow through 2022, it said. “We expect this plan will result in an engaged, expanded Harley-Davidson community with a more diverse rider base, along with industry-leading margins and cash flow,” Harley-Davidson CEO Matt Levatich said in a statement in June.<doc-sep>President Donald Trump early Sunday applauded Harley-Davidson owners or prospective buyers who plan to boycott the Milwaukee-based company over its decision to move some operations outside the United States.In a tweet just before 8 a.m., the president said a planned boycott was "great. "The comment appeared to be in response to a New York Times report, published Saturday, which introduced readers to bikers who are intensely loyal to the iconic brand. And it came just hours after the president welcomed motorcyclists to a crystal-chandeliered clubhouse ballroom at his Bedminster, New Jersey golf club. The dispute between Trump at Harley-Davidson erupted in June after the motorcycle company announced it would shift some motorcycle production to Europe because of retaliatory tariffs it faces in an escalating trade dispute between the U.S. and the European Union. Gov. Scott Walker by early Sunday afternoon had no public comment about The president's new swipe at Harley-Davidson, a fact that a Wisconsin Democratic Party spokeswoman seized upon. "Once again, Scott Walker has shown he will not stand up for Wisconsin businesses and workers when Trump attacks them," Democratic Party of Wisconsin chair Martha Laning said in a statement. "This is a brazen attack on a Wisconsin-grown manufacturer, but Scott Walker would rather stay on Trump's good side than fight for Wisconsin. Eight Democrats are looking to unseat Walker in the fall. Wisconsin's primary is Tuesday. Get breaking news alerts with the WISN 12 app or our email newsletters.Follow us: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube President Donald Trump early Sunday applauded Harley-Davidson owners or prospective buyers who plan to boycott the Milwaukee-based company over its decision to move some operations outside the United States. In a tweet just before 8 a.m., the president said a planned boycott was "great." The comment appeared to be in response to a New York Times report, published Saturday, which introduced readers to bikers who are intensely loyal to the iconic brand. And it came just hours after the president welcomed motorcyclists to a crystal-chandeliered clubhouse ballroom at his Bedminster, New Jersey golf club. The dispute between Trump at Harley-Davidson erupted in June after the motorcycle company announced it would shift some motorcycle production to Europe because of retaliatory tariffs it faces in an escalating trade dispute between the U.S. and the European Union. Gov. Scott Walker by early Sunday afternoon had no public comment about The president's new swipe at Harley-Davidson, a fact that a Wisconsin Democratic Party spokeswoman seized upon. "Once again, Scott Walker has shown he will not stand up for Wisconsin businesses and workers when Trump attacks them," Democratic Party of Wisconsin chair Martha Laning said in a statement. "This is a brazen attack on a Wisconsin-grown manufacturer, but Scott Walker would rather stay on Trump's good side than fight for Wisconsin. Eight Democrats are looking to unseat Walker in the fall. Wisconsin's primary is Tuesday. Get breaking news alerts with the WISN 12 app or our email newsletters. Follow us: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube<doc-sep>China is killing my business. Now tariffs are too Can the US win a trade war with China? TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump (L) and China's President Xi Jinping leave a business leaders event at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on November 9, 2017. Donald Trump urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to work "hard" and act fast to help resolve the North Korean nuclear crisis, during their meeting in Beijing on November 9, warning that "time is quickly running out". / AFP PHOTO / Nicolas ASFOURI (Photo credit should read NICOLAS ASFOURI/AFP/Getty Images) Ford won't bring this car to the US How the US trade war might impact your beer US company says it was crippled by Trump's tariffs Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (L) and U.S. President Donald Trump pose for photographs at the White House October 11, 2017 in Washington, DC. The United States, Canada and Mexico are currently engaged in renegotiating the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) QUEBEC CITY, QC - JUNE 08: Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau (R) speaks with U.S. President Donald Trump during the G7 official welcome at Le Manoir Richelieu on day one of the G7 meeting on June 8, 2018 in Quebec City, Canada. Canada will host the leaders of the UK, Italy, the US, France, Germany and Japan for the two day summit, in the town of La Malbaie. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images) (CNN) — President Donald Trump said it’s “great” that consumers might boycott Harley-Davidson if it moves some motorcycle production overseas. The President tweeted about the potential boycott on Sunday “Many @harleydavidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas. Great!” Trump wrote. “Most other companies are coming in our direction, including Harley competitors. A really bad move! U.S. will soon have a level playing field, or better.” Harley-Davidson did not respond to request for comment on Sunday. Trump’s remark came after the President hosted “Bikers for Trump” supporters at his golf club in Bedminister, New Jersey, over the weekend. Dozens of bikers descended on the posh club house, where Trump shook hands, posed for selfies and delivered an enemy-bashing speech to a cheering crowd, according to a report from the Associated Press. Tensions between the administration and Harley-Davidson have brewed for months. It started when Trump imposed hefty tariffs on steel and aluminum imports earlier this year in an effort to bolster domestic manufacturing. The European Union responded by pledging to raise tariffs on a list of goods that are imported from the United States, including Harley motorcycles. American demand for motorcycles has waned while foreign interest has grown. So, that wasn’t good news for the Wisconsin-based bike manufacturer. Harley said it stands to lose as much as $100 million a year, and the company pledged to shift some of its production abroad so that it could avoid the added tariffs on motorcycles sold in the EU. Trump accused Harley of using the European retaliatory tariffs as “an excuse” for moving manufacturing abroad. Trump, echoing a top union for Harley workers, claimed the company planned to shift some operations to Thailand before the tariffs were announced. Harley acknowledged it already had been moving some production abroad, but said moving more production overseas was the “only sustainable option” in the face of a trade war. The President also said last month his administration was “working with other Motor Cycle companies who want to move into the U.S.” CNN’s Nathaniel Meyersohn contributed to this report.<doc-sep>"We're only doing that because these are important growth markets for the company that, without those investments, we wouldn't have access to those customers, at any kind of reasonable price," he said.<doc-sep>
Many @harleydavidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas. Great! Most other companies are coming in our direction, including Harley competitors. A really bad move! U.S. will soon have a level playing field, or better. “Great,” the president said. “Most other companies are coming in our direction, including Harley competitors. A really bad move! U.S. will soon have a level playing field, or better.” CHICAGO — President Trump, using Twitter again to criticize a company he once hailed as a “true American icon,” gave his backing to Harley-Davidson Inc. motorcycle owners who may boycott the manufacturer if it moves some production out of the US Trump has lashed out more than a half-dozen times against the Milwaukee-based maker of the iconic motorcycles after praising the company early in his presidency. The relationship flipped after Harley announced plans earlier this summer to shift production of bikes destined for Europe to overseas facilities. It acted after Trump’s administration imposed steel and aluminum tariffs that promoted retaliatory measures from the European Union that Harley-Davidson said would increase its costs by $2,200 for each bike shipped there. Harley doesn’t sell motorcycles in the US that are built overseas, and the company has said that won’t change. On Sunday, it referred to comments by chief executive Matthew Levatich in an interview with CNBC July 30. Levatich said then that Harley-Davidson prefers to supply customers around the world from the US. Still, it has set up manufacturing internationally over the last two decades because trade and tariff restrictions in certain markets may make them prohibitive, and the company may lose access to some customers based on price, according to a transcript of the interview. Trump’s pronouncement came a day after he welcomed biker supporters to his golf course in Bedminster, N.J., and a New York Times article cited some Harley-Davidson owners criticizing the company at a rally in Sturgis, S.D.