Mercedes-Benz Rejects Trump Admin Pitch to Move HQ to US

CEO says company's German roots 'cannot be pulled out of the ground'

Jan. 28, 2026 at 2:23pm

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Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Källenius has reportedly rejected a pitch from the Trump administration to relocate the automaker's headquarters to the United States. Källenius told a German publication that Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick made the proposal last year, but Källenius said Mercedes-Benz's over 100-year-old roots in Swabia, Germany could not be 'uprooted'.

Why it matters

The Trump administration has used tariffs and other policies to encourage companies to expand manufacturing operations in the U.S., but Mercedes-Benz's rejection of the headquarters relocation pitch shows that some major global companies remain firmly committed to their home countries and regions despite these incentives.

The details

According to the report, Källenius told Lutnick that while Mercedes-Benz is a global company, its headquarters and core operations cannot be 'uprooted' from the Swabia region of Germany where the company was founded. Despite declining the headquarters relocation, Mercedes did later announce plans to shift production of an SUV model from Germany to its plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

  • In 2025, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick pitched Mercedes-Benz on relocating its headquarters to the United States.
  • In 2026, Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Källenius rejected Lutnick's proposal in an interview with a German publication.

The players

Ola Källenius

The Swedish-born chairman and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Group, who rejected the Trump administration's pitch to relocate the company's headquarters to the United States.

Howard Lutnick

The U.S. Commerce Secretary who made the pitch to Mercedes-Benz to move its headquarters to the United States.

Mercedes-Benz Group

The German automaker that traces its roots back to the birth of the automobile in 1886, and whose CEO rejected the Trump administration's proposal to relocate the company's headquarters.

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What they’re saying

“The star has been a global company for more than 100 years, but we are rooted in Swabia. Those roots cannot — and should not — be pulled out of the ground.”

— Ola Källenius, CEO, Mercedes-Benz Group

The takeaway

Mercedes-Benz's rejection of the Trump administration's pitch to relocate its headquarters to the U.S. underscores how some major global companies remain firmly committed to their home countries and regions, even in the face of incentives and policies aimed at encouraging domestic manufacturing and investment.