Since the beginning of March, the USA has had 25-percent tariffs on Mexico. Moreover, the USA has introduced tariffs on all imports of steel and aluminum. This directly affects Autoliv.
So far, Autoliv has been able to pass on the costs of the new tariffs to its customers, with the help of a temporary extra charge, according to Mikael Bratt. And Autoliv has better prerequisites to adapt than many competitors. The company is already heavily regionalized, with almost all production of components for customers in North America located in North America itself – and the same applies to Asia and the EU.
"We must get clarity"
However, a massive production shift to the USA, where Autoliv already has five factories with 6,000 employees – or switching entirely to American components – is not currently an option, according to Bratt.
We'll see what needs to be done. First and foremost, we must get clarity on the long-term nature and levels of these tariffs. Then we'll discuss with customers what we do, he says.
It's not automatically a better deal to tear down factories in Mexico and move them to the USA. Here, we need to make proper calculations. And then you need to have some long-term stability and predictability regarding the conditions surrounding this. We're not quite there, he adds.
He reminds us that there are also many components and parts in Autoliv's production that do not meet the country-of-origin requirements – in line with the USMCA trade agreement – that Trump has set as a condition for avoiding the 25-percent tariffs on Mexico.
There are reasons for that.
Much of what we need is not available in North America – and even less so in the USA. Just as an example, magnesium for our steering wheels is not available for purchase there. Certain electronic components that our customers want are not available there. This also applies to certain special steels.
"Very complex flows"
The origin is also a complex issue.
The raw material is not always bought directly from the smelter. There are very complex flows. That's why we're not providing any exact details about this.
What Trump's trade war leads to – whether the tariff shock results in new stable trade agreements and lower tariffs or even higher tariffs – remains to be seen.
There is great uncertainty. We don't have more insight into it than anyone else.
Joakim Goksör/TT
Facts: Better than expected for Autoliv
TT
Car safety company Autoliv made an unexpectedly strong profit during the first quarter of the year, according to an interim report. The result was clearly better than expected, and the stock rose by over 8 percent on the Stockholm Stock Exchange after the figures were presented.
Autoliv's operating profit increased to 254 million dollars in the first quarter of 2025, an increase of 31 percent compared to the same quarter a year earlier.
Adjusted and per share, it yielded a profit of 2.15 dollars, which can be compared to an average forecast among analysts of 1.65 dollars per share, according to the news agency Bloomberg.
Net sales fell to 2,578 million dollars during the quarter, down by 1.4 percent compared to the same quarter a year earlier. However, organically, there was a 2.2 percent growth in sales – which went against expectations of a decline.
