Harley CEO Asks Washington To Remove Business Barriers

KeithWandellHarleyYesterday Wednesday new Harley-Davidson CEO Keith Wandell was in Washington with other business leaders to participate in a meeting organized by the Obama administration to define a new US manufacturing framework. As you know the USA has lost a lot of jobs, and disproportionately, those jobs have been lost in manufacturing. Keith Wandell called on officials in Washington to help change trade rules and ease other burdens to make it easier for Harley to sell motorcycles. Wandell said that tariffs impede sales in other countries (today about 1 out of every 3 Harleys is sold abroad). He asked that American companies have access to sell products in other countries and aren’t unfairly undercut by foreign competition in the United States.

11 Responses to “Harley CEO Asks Washington To Remove Business Barriers”


  1. 1 Brian Dec 17th, 2009 at 8:27 am

    So Wandell and other CEOs are in Washington to ask President Obama to help promote capitalism in the USA.

    A noble cause for sure, but a complete waste of time.

  2. 2 Sheridan Dec 17th, 2009 at 8:44 am

    So the land that pushes free trade and globalisation on the rest of the world wants to put up trade barriers against those countries whose markets they continuously campaign to gain tariff free access too, typical…

  3. 3 Boss Hawg Dec 17th, 2009 at 8:47 am

    What? Another fruitless gesture when HD imports so many of its parts…can’t have the cake an the icing, too!

    Boss Hawg

  4. 4 Mike Kiwi Tomas, Kiwi Indian Motorcycles Dec 17th, 2009 at 9:16 am

    Many other countries still do unfairly impose trariffs/import duties on imported products yet those same countries exports into the US market skate by free. Its supposed to be free trade but not usually reciprocated towards US manufacturers.In other cases artificial road blocks are put into place to protect those countries markets. Asian markets in the past have been particularly good at protectionism.

  5. 5 grayhawk Dec 17th, 2009 at 11:34 am

    Mike’s got it right, they also; India and China to name a couple have tariffs that can double the costs of the unit and maintain further trade restrictions based on engine displacement and emissions constraints that larger cc units will never meet all in promoting self serving protectionism. Yes Harley has made some progress in the mango trade issue that has, some sa, enabled HD to take the first steps into India but far from an equal trade platform.
    This is a world wide issue and can only stymie exports sales in named countries.
    A modern Euorpean country or the US/Others for instance will never be able compete on the labor cost side of a developing country but the fact that additional barriers are put up/in place almost nullifies the ability to export your product into their country.

    All countries have some barriers but it should maintain some balance between them to serve both, what are the words they use to describe it, oh ya, Fair Trade.

    And please no bleeding hearts that promote catch up mentalities against developed nations that maintain we should cripple our economies to allow the upandcoming to fast forward and come up to an equal footing if/to one that is further advanced in the industrialized sense; they/we developed overtime research, etc. they/we earned it, they/we paid the dues it takes to progress and should not have to be weighted based on same entitled mindset.

    Kind a like a newcomer coming on the job wanting senior pay and bennys right off the bat:

    or making another point of contention probably deemed off topic by some but not really in the big picture, for instance another country economy killer that is going on as we speak for sure like capping are trade based on emissions/carbon credits past and future, etc. while others need not for another (x) number of years anyone heard of Copenhagen under the same newcomer premise but in numbers but far more impacting.

  6. 6 BikerMarc Dec 18th, 2009 at 8:21 am

    Are you kidding? Leaders of commerce, entrepreneurs, capitalists,… Asking the government for assistance, some help, fair consideration… From this Administration????

    Ain’t gonna happen folks. Not from this ship of fools in Washington. Complete mis-direction of effort.

    BikerMarc

  7. 7 Joe Skonecki Dec 18th, 2009 at 9:13 am

    Maybe we need to be more protectionist. I can’t see how equal trade is possible when we are competing with China men making 2 bucks an hour. Further more there are no (PC BS) emission standards in those countries. Just wait till all those cap and trade bills are passed in DC. All energy costs will go up. “A days wages for a loaf of bread”.

    We have gone from an export manufacturing based country to an import consumer country. We are giving our wealth away to the Cinese, India, ect, and now our politicians are asking those countries to loan us money.

  8. 8 Chief Waldo Dec 18th, 2009 at 11:03 am

    Just a few short years ago, Harley dealers were gouging customers, selling the bikes for thousands over MSRP.

    What goes around, comes around.

  9. 9 J Dec 18th, 2009 at 4:15 pm

    Good point, Waldo;

    Hey Harley- want to go around Washington and fix this problem?

    Drop the price of your bikes.

    Seriously- if you haven’t paid for the tooling on your stuff by now, you have bigger problems than existential conversations with politicians about tariffs………

    BTW, who is being “unfairly undercut”, Harley- are you being forced to sell your products at a loss?

    I love America too, but I am tired of this stupid rant by manufacturers whenever prices can’t go up- there is nothing written in stone that prices on new Harleys can’t go DOWN as well as UP.

    Give Capitalism a try, Wandell.

  10. 10 vtf Dec 23rd, 2009 at 9:21 am

    When importing USA equipment into China expect 30-40% duties, depending if the equipment is used or new. When improting China equipment into the USA expect 7% duties. IS this an equal playing field? We need to wake up.

  11. 11 grayhawk Dec 23rd, 2009 at 1:07 pm

    Food for thought about waking up in reference to China duties, etc.

    http://tradeandtaxes.blogspot.com/2009/11/obamas-failed-asia-trip-we-were.html

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Cyril Huze