German car maker Daimler AG issued a profit warning to investors on Wednesday night, blaming the effects of U.S. protectionism for weaker-than-anticipated earnings figures in 2018.

Daimler called the global trade conflict and tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump the "decisive factor" in the reason for lowering the annual forecast. As a consequence, Daimler now expects its earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) to decline slightly in 2018 compared to the previous year.

Daimler emphasized in its statement to investors that it would not be able to fully offset the effects of the spiralling trade conflicts unleashed by the United States through the reallocation of vehicles to other markets. The special utility vehicle (SUV) assembly line operated by Daimler's flagship brand Mercedes-Benz in Vance, Alabama in particular was likely to be hit.

In 2017, the U.S. SUV plant in Vance built nearly 286,000 vehicles which were exported to 135 global markets.

Daimler also cited new global certification processes for the exhaust-systems testing of light vehicles, recalls of vans affected by the ongoing diesel emissions-cheating scandal and falling Latin American demand as having contributed to its gloomier outlook for the year.

Daimler is the first major international corporation to issue a profit warning in response to the Trump administration's protectionist "America First" doctrine. The DAX-listed company recorded gross revenue of €164.3 billion (US$189.6 billion) in 2017 and employed over 289,000 staff across the world. (1 euro = US$1.15)

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