Trade war could cost U.S. jobs, says BMW CEO

BMW has told United States trade representatives, including Robert Lighthizer, that escalating an international trade war could threaten jobs in South Carolina, CEO Oliver Zipse stated on Friday.

An imposition of trade barriers are going to hamper the ability of BMW’s largest auto factory, based in Spartanburg, South Carolina to export around 70% of its produce across the world, the German executive stated.

“If they do this, then we are all losers,” Zipse stated of his conversations, speaking at an automotive conference in Stuttgart on Friday. “I have the impression they are listening carefully. The export model sustains many jobs in the United States.”

The Spartanburg plant has not had to decrease production capacity so far but any further barriers to international trade could change that, he stated.