Mexico, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and Germany ranked as the top exporters of cars to the United States in 2025, according to data from the Department of Commerce.
From around the world, U.S. car purchases totaled $183.827 billion, a 16% drop from 2024.
Exporters of cars to the United States in 2025
The automotive industry is one of the most important sectors in the US manufacturing industry. In 2023, it accounted for 4.8% of gross domestic product (GDP) and generated approximately 10.1 million direct and indirect jobs.
Throughout the 21st century, the US automotive sector has undergone significant transformations. These changes are related to the emergence of new market players and the development of increasingly technologically advanced vehicles.
The industry has also seen the evolution of the propulsion systems used in automobiles. At the same time, the sector faces challenges such as staff turnover in companies and the sustained increase in the cost of vehicles.
In the field of international trade, the United States maintained a central position in the global automobile market. In 2024, it became the world’s largest importer of cars, with foreign purchases totaling $219.5 billion. This volume represented 22.1% of total global vehicle imports.
Despite its year-on-year decline, from 2024 to 2025, Mexico increased its market share of total U.S. car imports from 22.8% to 24.3%.
Japan and Canada also increased their market share, the former from 18.6% to 20.2% and the latter from 12.9% to 13.7%.
In contrast, South Korea and Germany reduced their market share. South Korean supply fell from 17.3 to 17.2 percent, and German supply fell from 11.7 to 11.4 percent.
The following shows car exports to the United States in 2025, in millions of dollars:
- Mexico: 44,700.
- Japan: 37,078.
- South Korea: 31,534.
- Canada: 25,271.
- Germany: 21,041.
Automotive tariffs
In 2025, the Trump administration imposed new tariffs on vehicles and automotive components from several countries, including Mexico and Canada. The measure reconfigures the automotive industry’s supply chains in North America and modifies Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) incentives in the manufacturing sector.
US trade policy has generated divergent responses among automakers and auto parts suppliers. Some companies accelerated investments in plants within the United States to avoid tariffs, while others decided to cancel or postpone production projects in that country, adjusting their industrial location strategy.