{"id":908767,"date":"2026-09-25T05:52:09","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T05:52:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/908767\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T05:52:09","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T05:52:09","slug":"trumps-position-on-chinese-autos-is-as-clear-as-mud-thats-a-problem-including-for-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/908767\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s position on Chinese autos is as clear as mud. That\u2019s a problem, including for Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Employees work on an electric vehicle production line during at the Jiangling Group Electric Vehicle factory in Nanchang, China.KEVIN KROLICKI\/Reuters<\/p>\n

U.S. President Donald Trump is blowing hot and cold on Chinese cars \u2013 creating yet another headache for American automakers.<\/p>\n

The auto industry\u2019s consternation over his vacillating views was palpable Thursday as Mr. Trump pulled out all the stops to greet China\u2019s President Xi Jinping<\/a> for talks at the White House. Days earlier, groups representing domestic and foreign vehicle manufacturers, suppliers and dealers came together to exhort Mr. Trump<\/a> to prohibit Chinese automakers from assembling, importing or selling their cars in the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cAllowing them to open a domestic facility would provide a foothold in the U.S. market at the expense of manufacturers operating here,\u201d stated \u200btheir letter, which was jointly signed by half a dozen groups, including the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, the American Automotive Policy Council and the National Automobile Dealers Association. <\/p>\n

That collection of trade groups was advocating on behalf of various companies, including Detroit\u2019s Big Three automakers \u2013 Ford, General Motors and Stellantis \u2013and foreign manufacturers, like Toyota, Volkswagen and Hyundai, that build cars in the U.S. <\/p>\n

Opinion: Australia offers lesson in how Chinese EVs may reshape Canada\u2019s auto market<\/a><\/p>\n

They have good reason to worry. Earlier this month, Mr. Trump triggered an uproar<\/a> by saying he would be open to Chinese manufacturers making their cars in the U.S. \u2013 a seismic shift that, if it comes to pass, would deal a blow to Canada, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf China wanted to come in, and open a plant to build their cars here, I\u2019d be okay with it. Japan does it \u2013 but they hire our people,\u201d Mr. Trump said in an interview with Fox News. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I don\u2019t want is them to build in Mexico and just, you know, build it inexpensively and ship it across the border,\u201d Mr. Trump later added.<\/p>\n

This, of course, is the same president who has previously claimed that Chinese vehicles represent both an economic and national security threat to the U.S. and has repeatedly vowed to unleash a \u201cgolden age\u201d of American manufacturing.<\/p>\n

Mr. Trump has instead created chaos for automakers by killing federal incentives for electric vehicles<\/a> and waging trade wars, including with Canada and Mexico, that have driven up costs. <\/p>\n

Although Mexico could be nearing a trade deal<\/a> that would reduce tariffs on its autos, there is no such relief in sight for Canada. Instead, Mr. Trump is threatening to double Canadian auto tariffs from 25 per cent to 50 per cent on Jan. 1, 2027, and apply them to auto parts for the first time. <\/p>\n

That brings us back to China, an adversary that is receiving a warmer welcome in Washington than many U.S. allies.<\/p>\n

Analysis: Trump rolls out the red carpet for China\u2019s Xi as both sides seek stability<\/a><\/p>\n

If that wasn\u2019t bonkers enough, American automakers appear legitimately worried that Mr. Trump could make them sacrificial lambs in his talks with Mr. Xi, which wrap up Friday. <\/p>\n

Highlighting the stakes, GM CEO Mary Barra was reportedly on the guest list for Mr. Trump\u2019s state dinner at the White House on Thursday, according to Reuters news agency<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mr. Trump\u2019s flip-flopping views on Chinese cars are baffling.<\/p>\n

Washington maintains tariffs of more than 100 per cent on Chinese electric vehicles and a prohibition on the use of Chinese software that is capable of collecting user data.<\/p>\n

In June, his administration banned electric vehicle maker Polestar<\/a>, which is majority-owned by a Chinese company, from selling cars in the U.S. That same month, however, Washington cleared Volvo Cars<\/a>, which is majority-owned by Chinese automaker Geely Holding, to continue selling vehicles with its \u201cconnected car\u201d technology. <\/p>\n

Then, on Sept. 3, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy sent a letter scolding Ford CEO James Farley for various decisions, including the company\u2019s use of licensed technology from Chinese battery manufacturer CATL and its joint venture with Geely in Spain.<\/p>\n

\u201cFord must demonstrate a level of corporate citizenship that prioritizes the long-term resilience and technological sovereignty of the United States automotive ecosystem over short-term arrangements or questionable foreign alliances,\u201d reads the letter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Huh? <\/p>\n

Oh, and let\u2019s not forget Washington\u2019s turnabout on Ottawa\u2019s agreement<\/a> with Beijing to lower tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and allow an annual cap on those imports. <\/p>\n

Initially, Mr. Duffy said Canada would \u201csurely regret<\/a>\u201d the deal. Months later, however, Mr. Trump was caught on a hot mic <\/a>at the G7 Summit in France expressing his approval of Canada\u2019s annual import cap of 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles.<\/p>\n

Mr. Trump\u2019s position on Chinese cars is as clear as mud, and his musings are an affront to the American auto industry. <\/p>\n

If Detroit\u2019s Big Three automakers are afraid of being thrown to the wolves, their Canadian workers should be terrified. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Employees work on an electric vehicle production line during at the Jiangling Group…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":908768,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[45,49,48,5152],"class_list":["post-908767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-business","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-dei"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/908767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=908767"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/908767\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/908768"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=908767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=908767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=908767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}