MW Stellantis and Mercedes-Benz withdraw guidance as VW says it can't quantify tariff hit

By Steve Goldstein

Chrysler owner Stellantis and Mercedes-Benz withdrew their guidance for the year, while Volkswagen said it was expecting profits at the low end of a previous range as automakers struggle to assess the impact of President Donald Trump's tariff policy.

Investors by now aren't shocked, with the stock-price reaction ranging from slight gains for Stellantis (IT:STLAM) $(STLA)$ to a small dip for Mercedes Benz (XE:MBG), as Volkswagen's stock (XE:VOW3) was little changed.

The White House on Tuesday announced its latest tariff policy change, preventing automakers that have been assessed a 25% tariff from facing tariffs on other products like steel. It's also temporarily paused most of the tariffs on foreign-made parts in U.S.-made vehicles.

European automakers and car-parts producers XX:SXAP have seen their stocks struggle this year, falling 5% as the broader market has advanced by 4%.

"The difficulty for the automotive space is tariffs have been ladled on top of an existing soup of problems which were already proving difficult to digest," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, a U.K. financial advisor.

"The uncertain pace of the transition to electric vehicles, partly driven by regulation, is affecting companies' ability to make long-term plans. Demand has been affected by weak consumer confidence and pressures on household finances over several years as well as supply chain issues."

-Steve Goldstein

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April 30, 2025 05:33 ET (09:33 GMT)

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