Honda's Threat to Skip a New Factory Isn't About Honda. It's About a Trade Deal Stuck in Limbo

When a Honda executive stands in front of reporters in Washington and says the company might not build its next North American factory, that isn't a manufacturing update. It's a message aimed at trade negotiators, delivered in public because private memos don't move anybody. Honda Executive Vice President Noriya Kaihara told reporters at a roundtable this week that the automaker is close to full production capacity …