TPP Pullout Spurred Harley’s ‘Plan B’ Factory in Thailand
- After Trump left trade pact, CEO decided to shut U.S. plant
- Motorcycle maker says Missouri closure linked to sales slump
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Harley-Davidson Inc.’s chief executive officer said he decided to build a plant in Thailand when it was clear the U.S. would abandon the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the free-trade agreement President Donald Trump withdrew from last year.
The factory was the “Plan B” that Harley employed after the U.S. abandoned the trade pact with a bloc of 11 countries mostly in Asia, CEO Matt Levatich said in a phone interview.