[Global Network Reporter Lin Yiran] In order to cope with the "trade friction" provoked by the United States, not long ago, American motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson planned to transfer some production lines overseas. This triggered a series of war of words between US President Trump and Harley. On August 12, local time, Trump once again criticized Harley-Davidson on Twitter, saying that if the company insists on transferring manufacturing overseas, it will be resisted by many Harley-Davidson owners.
Trump wrote in Twitter: "If Harley-Davidson really moves manufacturing overseas, many Harley-Davidson owners will boycott the company. Very good! Most other companies are following our direction, including competitors of Harley-Davidson. This (moving production overseas) is really a bad move! The United States will soon have a fair and even better competitive environment. "
When Trump took office, he praised Harley-Davidson as a "true American idol" company. However, the practice of "American Idol" has deeply hurt Trump this time. In order to save costs in trade friction, Harley-Davidson recently made a plan to transfer some production to a new factory in Thailand, and expected to close the factory in Kansas City, Missouri. Recently, Trump has angered Harley-Davidson more than six times and even threatened to cooperate with its competitors.
However, Harley-Davidson’s "escape from the United States" is not unique, and some American companies have begun to follow suit. According to Business Insider, an American business media, Moog Music Company of the United States is also considering transferring its production line in the United States to foreign countries for fear that Trump’s tariff policy will increase costs.
In an e-mail to customers, the company said that Trump’s tariff on China products would increase the cost of some components used in synthesizer production, and may force the company’s operation to undergo major changes. "These tariffs will immediately increase the cost of building music equipment, which may force us to lay off employees, and in the worst case, may require us to move some factories overseas."
In the face of Trump’s repeated "attacks", in July this year, Harley-Davidson said that it is expected that the new tariffs will cost the company as much as $100 million a year. In an interview with CNBC, Harley CEO Luo Maide said in July that he was innocent. Trump’s statement was a "death gaze" for them, because the company was forced to make a difficult business decision, which had nothing to do with politics.