One of the reasons that the current US administration has provided for the tariff regime it has implemented is that there's a desire to have more manufacturing happen in the country. However, local manufacturing isn't necessarily spared the impact of tariffs if it's dependent on the global supply chain.

Samsung SDI, the conglomerate's battery-making affiliate, has a production facility in the United States where it makes batteries for electric vehicles. The company has said that its production costs are set to rise because of the new tariffs.

Samsung SDI's EVP Kim Yoon-tae highlighted during the company's Q1 2025 earnings call that many materials and components required to make electric vehicle batteries are imported. As those imports are now subject to varying tariffs based on their country of origin, Samsung SDI's production cost is certainly going to increase.

Kim didn't say whether Samsung SDI will pass on these cost increases to the automakers that include the likes of BMW, General Motors, Rivian, and others, which could potentially have an impact on car prices for the consumer, or if they will be absorbed by the company. The executive also highlighted another element to this tariff regime that could further end up raising car prices.

Assuming Samsung SDI passes on the cost hikes, EV makers will first buy batteries that are expensive, and then when they ship the cars over to the US from their factories in Canada or Mexico, the ready vehicles would be hit by tariffs again, potentially leading to a significant increase for the end consumer.

This is far from the only business division of Samsung that faces increasing uncertainty due to the tariffs, but as it stands, this is how things may be for the foreseeable future.