Trump Wants to Make Your Toy Cars More Expensive Too

Hot Wheels' parent company Mattel is the latest brand to find itself in the president's tariff crosshairs.

President Trump is threatening to slap a major (tiny) car producer with 100-percent tariffs. As first reported by Motor1, Trump made the comments about toy brand Mattel, producers of Hot Wheels, at a White House presser last Thursday. When asked about brands moving production elsewhere instead of within America, Trump—who referred to Mattel as a country—said "let him go, and we'll put a 100-percent tariff on his toys, and he won't sell one toy in the Unites States, and that's their biggest market."

For reference, North America as a whole is Mattel's largest market, accounting for over half of the toy brand's yearly sales, which includes Hot Wheels as well as Barbie, Fisher-Price, and licensed toys for IPs such as Minecraft.

The comments come after current Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz told CNBC that the company was looking at various ways to navigate the current uncertainty in the market. He told Squawk Box host Becky Quick that the company has spent the last seven years diversifying its production sourcing: this year China now represents less than 40-percent of the brand's global production, and by 2027 no single company will make up more than 25-percent of the total. By that same time, the goal is for China to account for only 10-percent of the brand's production.

Kreiz also stressed that while production happens globally, "we need to remember that a significant part of toy creation happens in America. Design, development, product engineering, brand management, all happens in America." He added that production in other countries enable brands to offer toys at affordable prices—though also acknowledged that price increases may come if the tariffs stay.

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