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U.S. stocks closed slightly lower as investors continued to mull President Donald Trump’s mixed messaging on tariffs.

Late Wednesday, Trump imposed a 25% tariff aimed at foreign cars, or on all cars not made in the U.S. The tariffs will go into effect April 2, and “we start collecting April 3,” he said. They are in addition to duties that are already in place.

He said the tariffs would be “permanent” and apply not just to fully assembled cars, but also to key auto parts, including engines, transmissions and electrical components. Tariffs on auto parts would take effect no later than May 3.

Shares of automakers like General Motors, Tesla, Ford and Stellantis in the U.S. all fell.

Electric vehicle maker Tesla was an exception, with its shares rising. Trump said the duties announced on Wednesday could be net neutral or even good for Tesla.

Most of Tesla's vehicles are produced in the U.S., though the EV giant does use imported parts. Tesla chief executive Elon Musk said late on Wednesday "to be clear, this will affect the price of parts in Tesla cars that come from other countries. The cost impact is not trivial."

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the European Union “will continue to seek negotiated solutions, while safeguarding its economic interests.”

If countries offer concessions, "there is no way of knowing whether Trump would be willing to reverse these tariffs," said Paul Ashworth, chief North America economist at research firm Capital Economics. "In the short-run, however, it will be inflationary and, assuming that domestic producers respond by substantially increasing their own prices, could make new vehicles something of a luxury item. If so, then expect consumers to hold onto their used vehicles for much longer, boosting prices of used vehicles too, plus demand for auto repair shops and parts."

Mixed messages also continued to come from Trump. He said on Wednesday tariffs planned for April 2 would be “very lenient” and that he would be willing to reduce tariffs on China to help deal with ByteDance’s TikTok. Those would be heartening signs an all-out tariff war would be avoided for investors worried about an economic slowdown coupled with higher prices.

However, Trump also seemed to remain intent to place tariffs on pharmaceuticals and lumber.

On Thursday, he also threatened to impose “far larger” tariffs on the EU and Canada if they work together to combat trade tariffs.

The blue-chip Dow closed down 0.37%, or 155.09 points, to 42,299.70; the broad S&P 500 dipped 0.33%, or 18.89 points to 5,693.31; and the tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 0.53%, or 94.98 points, to 17,804.03. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.365%.