France Announces Retaliatory Vehicle Subsidies; Debt Limit Talks Postponed
This week French President Emmanuel Macron, a vocal critic of the Buy American slant of the Clean Vehicle Tax Credit (CVTC) and other green subsidies in the IRA announced plans for a counter measure to benefit European car manufacturers. The French subsidies will be part of an ucoming “green industry bill” and could be in effect before the end of the year. It’s unclear if Macron’s plan will impact discussions of a minerals trade agreement between the U.S. and E.U., which would allow European minerals to quality under the battery requirements of the CVTC. The fourth meeting of the joint U.S./E.U. Trade and Technology Council is scheduled for later this month.
Debt Limit
The next meeting between President Joe Biden and key congressional leaders on the debt limit, originally scheduled for today, has been postponed until next week. No discernible progress appeared to have been made at the first meeting, held earlier this week. The House Republican majority narrowly passed a bill to lift the debt limit weeks ago, but the bill also included several other Republican priorities, including the repeal of, or significant changes to, many of the clean energy tax breaks in the IRA, to which Democrats strongly object. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said that the nation could run out of cash to cover its debts by as soon as June 1.
Quote of the Week
“Terrible trade policy seems particularly resilient in D.C., fueled by two political parties both vying to be the “Buy American” party – despite decades of data proving that such efforts fail the American worker, the American consumer, and the American economy every time they are implemented.”
-Mike DeSilva, AIADA Chairman (www.aiada.org)
ICYMI
In case you missed it, the latest edition of AutoDealer magazine is out now. Check it out!
Friday Feel Good
Here is just one recent example of how dealers are doing good:
Germain Subaru donated more than $12,000 to RESCUEDohio, a dog rescue and adoption non-profit, as the recipient of their Subaru Shares the Love event.
We want to hear more about how you are supporting your local community – tweet us at @AIADA_News and use the hashtag #DealersDoGood.
