Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Tesla’s chief executive and leader of the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Elon Musk said over the weekend that he would support a free trade situation between Europe and US, he stated at Italy’s right-wing Lega party in Florence on Saturday.
“I’m hopeful, for example, with the tariffs that at the end of the day, I hope it is agreed that both Europe and the United States should move ideally, in my view, to a zero tariff situation, effectively creating a free trade zone between Europe and North America,” Musk said. [Full statement below]
“That’s what I hope occurs,” Tesla’s chief added, leaving unclear whether Musk supports or opposes the newly announced 25% tariffs on all foreign-made cars and auto parts. Tesla’s chief noted last week that Tesla is not immune to the duties despite producing its U.S. cars locally reducing its exposure to Trump’s measures.
Asked about Musk’s comments, Trump’s top trade adviser Peter Navarro said on CNBC this Monday that Tesla’s boss is not “a car manufacturer,” adding later: “He’s a car assembler in many cases.”
“Look, Elon Musk and his Doge team is making a contribution to America in terms of waste, fraud, and abuse,” Navarro stated. “And that’s a very good thing for this country and the American people.” Despite the praise, Trump’s top trade adviser critiqued Tesla’s U.S. supply chain.
“But he’s not a car manufacturer,” he stated. “He’s a car assembler in many cases. If you go to his Texas plant, a good part of the engines that he gets, which in the EV case is the batteries come from Japan and come from China.”
“The electronics come from Taiwan,” Navarro added before naming tires as another example. Full statement available below.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced the appointment of Peter Navarro as a senior counselor for trade and manufacturing last December. Back then, Trump said the role “leverages Peter’s broad range of White House experience, while harnessing his extensive Policy analytic and Media skills.”
In early March, Navarro was asked about the potential scenario where Chinese carmakers, including the world’s largest new energy vehicle (NEV) manufacturer, BYD, could sell their cars in the U.S. without tariffs and the impact that could have on the domestic market.
Navarro sharply criticized China’s trade practices, arguing that unfair advantages allow Chinese automakers to dominate global markets where ‘massive government subsidies’ also had a role. He pointed to labor conditions and environmental regulations as key factors in the cost disparity between Chinese and U.S. manufacturers.
Navarro previously served as director of the White House National Trade Council from 2017 to 2021, where he was a key advocate for Trump’s tariffs on $370 billion worth of Chinese imports and national security tariffs on steel and aluminum.
