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President Trump made headlines in Japan today when he called on that nation'southward automakers to build more than cars in the Us, saying, "We love it when you build cars—if you're a Japanese firm, nosotros honey it—try building your cars in the Usa instead of shipping them over. Is that possible to ask? That'southward non rude."

Japan, Inc., already builds in the Us 3-quarters of the cars it sells in the US. That was near 4 million cars terminal year. If you look at the Trump's extended quote (beneath), he appears to acknowledge the US has Japanese associates plants, past saying that in the room, "We have a couple of the corking folks from 2 of the biggest machine companies in the world that are edifice new plants and doing expansions of other plants" …so launches into the riff telling the Japanese to "endeavour edifice your cars in the Us." It is non the kind of sentence you'd desire to diagram on an English language examination. Or to explicate, if you're Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Japanese plants, pattern centers, R&D centers in the Usa. (Source: JAMA)

The Facts About Strange Automakers in the US

The reality is that Japanese (too Korean and German) automakers have a big footprint in the U.s.. Japanese-visitor manufacturing is concentrated in the southeast, middle South, Ohio, and Texas, with 24 plants total in the US. The Japanese also accept 43 R&D and design centers here, particularly in California, Michigan, and the Northeast. All told, they have facilities in 20 states with almost 100,000 directly employees, and at least that many once more counting the suppliers of stamped body panels, seats, electronics, wiring harnesses, and tires and wheels.

In addition to the 4 meg cars built and sold into the U.s.a., some other 412,000 cars and trucks were exported from Japan-in-the-US plants in 2016. All of this data is from the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA).

Another factoid: The largest Usa exporter of cars by a single company isn't Ford, General Motors, or Fiat Chrysler (FCA, builder of Chrysler, Dodge, and RAM). It'south BMW and its Spartanburg, SC, institute, which exported 70 percent of its 2016 product of 411,000 vehicles, or 288,000 vehicles sent to export. The factory builds every BMW crossover/SUV except the subcompact BMW X1; it is BMW's biggest establish in the earth.

Nissan Rogue at Smyrna, Tenn., plant. Nissan had built 10 million vehicles in Tennessee by 2014.

Long vs. Short-Form Trump Quote

Speaking in Tokyo Monday morning, with officials from Toyota and Mazda nowadays, here's what Trump had to say. This includes the shorter quote (boldfaced) that set people wondering how dialed-in the president is:

When you want to build your motorcar plants, you volition have your approvals nigh immediately. When you want to aggrandize your plants, yous will have your approvals almost immediately. And in the room, we have a couple of the neat folks from 2 of the biggest car companies in the earth that are building new plants and doing expansions of other plants. And yous know who you lot are, and I want to just thank you lot very much. I desire to cheers.

I also want to recognize the business leaders in the room whose confidence in the Us — they've been creating jobs — you have such confidence in the United States, and yous've been creating jobs for our country for a long, long time. Several Japanese car industry firms accept been actually doing a job. And nosotros love it when yous build cars — if you're a Japanese firm, we love information technology — endeavor building your cars in the United states instead of shipping them over. Is that possible to ask? That's not rude. Is that rude? I don't call up so. [Laughter.] If you could build them. But I must say, Toyota and Mazda — where are you? Are you here, anybody? Toyota? Mazda? I idea and then. Oh, I idea that was yous. That's big stuff. Congratulations. Come on, let me milkshake your hand. [Applause.] They're going to invest $i.6 billion in building a new manufacturing plant, which will create equally many equally 4,000 new jobs in the U.s.. Give thanks you very much. Appreciate it.

So, the president did make a rambling mention of "business leaders in the room whose conviction in the Us—they've been creating jobs—you have such conviction in the United States, and you've been creating jobs for our country for a long, long time."

The president also spoke broadly almost how chop-chop approvals come. Eventually they do considering states and towns love the jobs that pay proficient wages for the surface area–often $xv an hour plus benefits for line work. Just in that location are also state and local approvals required, and some citizens want government to make certain breeding habitats aren't bulldozed, and that the community has plenty sewage and fresh h2o capacity to get around.

Toyota has six US plants. It will spend $10 billion 2017-2022 to add factory capacity and movement its U.s.a. HQ from SoCal to Texas.

"Ii of the Biggest Motorcar Companies:" Toyota, Mazda

He lauds "ii of the biggest automobile companies in the world [Toyota, Mazda] that are edifice new plants and doing expansions of other plants," a remark that many or virtually would take to mean the United states of america. Toyota is the largest automaker based on 2016 sales revenues. Only Mazda is a comparative pipsqueak, a visitor with many well-reviewed cars such as the Mazda CX-v crossover, just somewhere around No. 15 when it comes to sales volume or dollar volume.

Some news outlets, especially the Washington Post, said the small-scale quote fragment is disproved by the larger context. We'd call it a draw: Trump'southward stream-of-consciousness speaking in Nippon mentions automakers showing "such conviction in the United States, and yous've been creating jobs for our country for a long, long time." So, two sentences later he harangues them to "attempt edifice your cars in the United States instead of shipping them over." It'southward hard to know what'due south going through his caput. The speech could have been clearer and probably should have acknowledged how many cars are already built here. Nowhere did Trump mention–or thank Nippon–that three-quarters of Japanses cars sold in the United states of america are built here. That corporeality, equally the President might say, is "yuge."

Trump's remarks were in the broader context of the "massive trade deficits at the hands of Japan for many, many years," according to Trump. He noted that Japan buys a lot of US war machine hardware ("the best military equipment in the earth"), adding, "many millions of cars are sold past Japan into the United States, whereas almost no cars go from the U.s. into Japan." He is correct there. US sales into Japan are only virtually 13,000 a year, but few U.s. models would be meaty enough to interest the Japanese habitation market. Ford is making a stab at the Japanese market with its subcompact Fiesta sedan.

Anyway, the Japanese marketplace is mature, information technology'south one-quarter the size of the U.s. market place, and the real market in Asia is Mainland china, where the United states is doing reasonably well, including some surprises: The Chinese go wild for Buicks, ownership more than Americans do. Also, the Chinese, similar the Japanese, admire European cars, and consider Audi-BMW-Mercedes-Volvo to be prestige cars, non Cadillac or Lincoln.