The CEO of the American automaker Ford, Jim Farley, said it is necessary to prevent the Chinese from selling their vehicles in the United States, otherwise the consequences for national manufacturing would be “devastating.”
CHINESE ELECTRIC CARS IN NORTH AMERICA
Chinese electric cars, affordable and of good quality, have effectively been expelled from the U.S. market through a 100 percent tariff. The same does not apply to the rest of North America, however, to which the United States is linked by a free trade agreement: in Mexico, out of ten electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles sold, seven are models produced by the Chinese automaker Byd; Canada, on the other hand, recently signed an agreement with China for the import of 49,000 cars per year.
“I really hope we don’t allow them to cross the border,” Farley declared referring to the Chinese cars that arrived in Canada. According to him, the Donald Trump administration should use the negotiations for the revision of the North American trade agreement to include a ban on the re-export to the United States of Chinese vehicles present in Mexico and Canada.
BETWEEN COMPETITION AND SECURITY
In addition to criticizing the public incentives received at home by Chinese automakers, which distort competition with U.S. manufacturers, Farley also believes that Chinese vehicles should be kept away from the United States for security reasons. “All these vehicles have dozens of cameras and can collect a lot of data,” including sensitive information, he said.
WHAT WILL TRUMP DO?
Ford’s CEO’s words are addressed to President Trump, who last January, during the Detroit Economic Club – Detroit was once the undisputed hub of the U.S. automotive industry – said he was willing to “let China in” to the United States provided it opens plants and gives jobs to American workers. Farley, however, would like to see an approach similar to that implemented by the Beijing Communist Party adopted: Chinese automakers, that is, would be forced to create joint ventures with U.S. companies, which would control the majority of shares (also with a view to promoting technology transfer on electric mobility).
In May, Trump is expected to travel to Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.
NOT ONLY FORD: AMERICAN COMPANIES AGAINST CHINESE BRANDS
American automakers, explained Startmag, “currently need everything but fierce rivals with enough capital to start undercutting list prices. That’s why they are taking a stand” against Chinese companies.
“The Alliance for Automotive Innovation (which represents, among others, GM, Ford, Stellantis, but also Toyota and Volkswagen), the National Automobile Dealers Association, Autos Drive America, the American Automotive Policy Council, and MEMA, the suppliers’ association, have taken pen and paper to ask Trump not to allow them to open factories in the 50 states.”
“For U.S. brands and suppliers […], Chinese automakers, even producing in the U.S., would only trigger a race to the lowest price, a condition that American companies are currently not able to face.”
