Despite where the president chooses to make his own merchandise, the Trump campaign focused on making sure jobs in the U.S. go to hardworking Americans. Now, due to threats of increased import taxes — and perhaps in an attempt to butter up the new administration — Samsung Electronics may create a new manufacturing plant for home appliances in the United States.
According to sources, Samsung is giving serious consideration to adding U.S. production facilities. Although the company has declined to comment on any specific plans, a statement sent via email to Reuters said that they’ve already made substantial American investments, including the $17 billion they’ve spent on a chip plant in Austin, Texas.
“We continue to evaluate new investment needs in the U.S. that can help us best serve our customers,” said the email.
The rumors have not gone unnoticed by the president, who tweeted at the company: “Thank you, @Samsung! We would love to have you!”
Trump is said to be a Samsung user himself, so his interest in the move may be personal, too. He supposedly uses a Samsung Galaxy S3 or S4 to send tweets from his personal Twitter account.
For large corporations like Samsung, building a U.S. plant would not be a financial burden; however, border taxes would present a bigger hardship, as it would be much more difficult to compete with U.S.-based competitors.
Samsung is based in South Korea, which has not yet been targeted by an impending import tax increase. However, other companies based there, like LG and Hyundai, are already exploring the possibility of having a U.S. plant. Considering that revenues of electronics and appliance rental alone in the U.S. were projected to reach $5.7 billion last year, these companies may be smart to think ahead. Americans will have to wait and see whether these rumors pan out for additional job opportunities or competitive costs in the future.