Hertz wins over Ackman in car tariff bet

High stakes: Customers queue at a Hertz counter in the United States. Trump’s 25% levy on imported automobiles is widely expected to raise car prices by thousands of US dollars if it remains in effect for long. — Bloomberg

DETROIT: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management has amassed nearly 20% stake in Hertz Global Holdings Inc in a bet on the rental car company’s turnaround plan and that tariffs will boost the value of its vehicles.

The firm began buying shares late last year and now has “a 19.8% stake in the company comprised of outright share ownership and total return swaps,” Ackman said in a post on X.