[FRANKFURT] BMW said on Friday it may increase the amount of steel it sources locally for its US plant after Washington imposed tariffs on imports of steel and aluminium from the European Union.

The German carmaker's plant at Spartanburg, South Carolina, is its largest in the world, and sources more than 70 per cent of its steel locally.

"We have a target to increase the US percentage, which is dependent on the availability of appropriate specification and quality," BMW said in a statement.

Washington imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from the European Union, reviving investor fears of a global trade war.

REUTERS