Audi defends decision to stand by Trump on $4B US factory

• Audi CEO defends $4B US plant investment at Trump rally. • Tariffs cost Audi $1.4B; plant needs VW board approval. • German union criticizes political timing, demands worker protections. Audi CEO Gernot Doellner defended a planned $4 billion US assembly plant in Georgia during a Trump rally, citing months of planning. The facility would produce 200,000 SUVs yearly, pending Volkswagen supervisory board approval. Tariffs cost Audi €1.2 billion last year, prompting the move. German IG Metall union called the timing politically questionable and demanded job protections for German workers. Lower Saxony Premier Olaf Lies said the expansion is acceptable if German employees benefit too.