Donald Trump took to the stage in Tokyo Bay, telling US troops that Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda had promised to pour $10 billion into American car plants across multiple states. The former president declared this investment a key win for US manufacturing and urged everyone to “go out and buy a Toyota.”
But Toyota quickly stepped in and crushed that narrative. Senior executive Hiroyuki Ueda clarified that no fresh $10 billion deal had been made. The $10 billion figure actually referred to past investments made during Trump’s first term, not a new commitment. According to Ueda, Toyota assured it would keep investing on roughly the same scale, but no new $10 billion pledge exists.
The clash unfolded publicly shortly after Trump’s high-profile remarks to troops aboard the USS George Washington. Sources suggest Trump might have misunderstood or conflated the past investment records Toyota shared with Japanese and US officials before his visit.
Toyota’s denial was swift and clear: no explicit promise was made on the scale Trump claimed, and no fresh $10 billion investment is on the table. The Japanese automaker emphasized its long history of US investments totaling nearly $50 billion and recent smaller commitments like an $88 million boost to hybrid production in West Virginia.
The public contradiction put Trump in a tough spot, contradicting his narrative of massive foreign capital flooding the US thanks to his policies.
