American automakers and dealers are calling on President Donald Trump to maintain restrictions on Chinese automakers ahead of his meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping scheduled for next week.
In a Sept. 17 letter to the president, six trade associations representing major automakers, including Ford and Tesla, urged Trump to maintain policies barring Chinese automakers from selling, importing, or manufacturing vehicles in the United States.
They said current U.S. policies have limited China’s dominance in materials used for domestic automotive production, while Washington maintains 100 percent tariffs on Chinese vehicle imports.
“Chinese automakers have zero market share in the U.S. Allowing them to open a domestic facility would provide a foothold in the U.S. market at the expense of manufacturers operating here,” the groups wrote.
The groups said that allowing Chinese automakers to operate in the United States would not create new jobs but instead “shift jobs away” from manufacturers that have made long-term investments in the country and toward Chinese state-controlled companies.
They warned that Chinese vehicles are equipped with the ability to collect and transmit personal data to the Chinese regime and that allowing them into the U.S. market would “weaken the market position of incumbent manufacturers.”
“Domestic assembly of Chinese vehicles doesn’t resolve the connected vehicle security threat. Even if built in the U.S., these factories would still rely on Chinese suppliers and Chinese components, and would be overseen by individuals with direct ties to the Chinese government,” the groups said.
The White House said in response that it was working with American automakers to revive U.S. auto industry dominance “while safeguarding our national and economic security.”
Trump last week dismissed the possibility of allowing Chinese cars to be imported into the United States but indicated that he may be open to Chinese automakers’ production of cars in the country, provided they hire American workers.
“If China wanted to come in and open a plant to build their cars here, I’d be okay with that. Japan does it, but they hire our people. The big thing is they hire our people,” he told Fox News on Sept. 11.
Trump is expected to discuss auto-related issues with Xi during the Chinese leader’s visit to the United States on Sept. 24.
The letter was signed by leaders of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, American Automotive Policy Council, Autos Drive America, Vehicle Suppliers Association, National Automobile Dealers Association, and Zero Emission Transportation Association.
John Bozzella, president and CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, on Sept. 3, urged Congress to permanently ban the import and manufacture of Chinese-connected vehicles, hardware, and software before the current congressional session ends.
Bozzella warned that China is gaining market share in Europe, Australia, Southeast Asia, Mexico, and South America with vehicles that can collect, process, and transmit “sensitive vehicle and consumer data to the Chinese Communist Party.”
He said this has not yet occurred in the United States but urged lawmakers to act quickly, citing the scale and urgency of the threat.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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