The U.S. auto industry structure has undergone major changes since the early post-WWII era. Once, the Big Three U.S. automakers completely dominated the U.S. and World auto markets. Today, the positions of the Big Three have shifted, no longer do they overwhelming dominate their major competitors. The U.S. auto industry has seen the notable investments of foreign “transplants,” which have built major production facilities on U.S. soil, while simultaneously the Big Three are investing heavily in production facilities in foreign countries, looking for different opportunities such as low cost production and domestic markets. Also, U.S. auto firms are joint venturing with foreign competitors for their local market access, to learn their Know-How, etc. This paper explores how international trade and trade polices have impacted of many of the changes in this industry.
