Under Nissan’s America-first strategy, the automaker reduced its tariff exposure by $2.3 billion in its last fiscal year, cutting its potential tariff burden by 61% after the import duties took effect in April 2025. That was made possible by increasing domestic production of its SUVs and pickup trucks, including the Rogue, Pathfinder, and Frontier.
According to Automotive News, Nissan increased the domestic production share of its U.S. sales volume by a third to 60%. Nissan Americas Chairman Christian Meunier expects local production to reach 70% of sales by late 2028, once the next-generation Rogue and its e-Power hybrid variant are fully localized in Smyrna, Tennessee, and up to 80% within four to five years.
But despite that financial relief, the strategy is not as straightforward as it sounds. Nissan considered moving production of its affordable models, the Sentra and the Kicks, from Mexico to the U.S., but opted not to because it would be “impractical.” That’s because vehicles under the $30,000 price point have thin profit margins, and without the benefit of lower production costs in Mexico, the company decided to absorb the 25% tariffs instead.
Read the article.