President Trump said a planned boycott of iconic American motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson for wanting to move some of its operations outside the United States would be “great.” “Many @harleydavidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas. Great!,” Trump wrote Sunday on Twitter. “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 sent the tweet from his golf resort in Bedminster, NJ, where he hosted members of “Bikers for Trump” on Saturday afternoon. Harley-Davidson executives said in June they were planning to shift production of motorcycles being sold in European markets to overseas factories. They said it was in response to retaliatory tariffs the European Union slapped on imported hogs after Trump imposed levies on steel and aluminum imports from Europe. Harley-Davidson said the EU’s tariffs would increase the cost of one of its bikes by $2,200. Some owners told the New York Times that the decision would end their decades-old relationship with the Wisconsin-based company. “I’m riding my last Harley,” Gary Rathbun, a 67-year-old retired truck driver attending the legendary Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota, told the newspaper. “It was American made, and that’s why we stood behind them.”<doc-sep>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>"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>President Trump Donald TrumpTrump lashes out after grand jury seated for New York criminal probe Schumer tees up vote on Jan. 6 commission bill Senators struggle to save Jan. 6 commission MORE early Sunday called a planned boycott by some Harley-Davidson motorcycle owners “great.” “Many @harleydavidson owners plan to boycott the company if manufacturing moves overseas,” he said on Twitter. “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.” 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. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 12, 2018 ADVERTISEMENT Some Harley-Davidson owners told The New York Times that they will abandon the Wisconsin-based company if it goes through with plans to shift some production overseas. Several owners said they planned to stop purchasing motorcycles from the company as a result of its announcement to move some of its production out of the U.S. The company’s decision was prompted by retaliatory tariffs on motorcycles from the European Union following Trump’s decision to impose steep tariffs on steel and aluminum on the EU and other longtime U.S. allies. Trump on Saturday welcomed members of a "Bikers for Trump" group to his New Jersey golf club.<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.