Ford Motor (F) may benefit from the 25% tariff to be imposed by the US on imported light vehicles and some auto parts starting April 3, while General Motors (GM) is "more exposed" to the levy and may need to rebalance production, BofA Securities said in a note Thursday.
The firm said Ford is "relatively less affected" because the models it imports constitute only 20% of its total volumes, while General Motors imports 49% of its vehicles, BofA said.
BofA's analysis shows that vehicle prices could rise by up to $10,000 if original equipment manufacturers fully pass on the tariffs on affected vehicles to consumers, according to the note.
"However, we don't expect consumers would absorb the price increase in full," BofA said. "Importing OEMs are more likely to sell vehicles at breakeven until they rebalance the production footprint."
Shares of Ford fell 2.5% and GM dropped 6.6% in recent trading Thursday.
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