Ford CEO Jim Farley has long maintained that he sees cheap, heavily-subsidized Chinese EVs as a threat the the company’s business, given the fact that they’re currently being sold in that country for as little as $10k. While The Blue Oval continues to work on its own low-cost EVs to combat those models, the Biden Administration also recently expressed concerns that if Chinese EVs were to reach American soil, they could pose a national security risk, in addition to stealing share from domestic automakers that don’t yet have proper competition ready. Thus, the Biden Administration imposed significantly higher tariffs on Chinese EVs earlier this week, and that move is one that is supported by the Ford-backed lobby group Alliance for Automotive Innovation.
“U.S. automakers can outcompete and out innovate anyone on the EV transition. No doubt about that. The issue at this moment isn’t the will… the issue is time,” said John Bozzella, president and CEO, Alliance for Automotive Innovation. “What do I mean? China got a 15-year head start on electrification and cornered the market on major parts of the global EV supply chain – including mining and processing of critical minerals like lithium, cobalt and graphite used in EV batteries. That’s changing as we localize EV supply chains and partner with allies to source and process raw materials. The change is picking up speed. It just won’t… and can’t… happen overnight. It takes time for complex global supply chains to form. But it will happen.”
“They’ve got a major EV overcapacity problem. They’re building too many EVs – too many heavily subsidized EVs – for the domestic market and have no choice but to look abroad to offload those vehicles at budget prices. It’s happening already in Europe. Chinese overcapacity, combined with a healthy Chinese government subsidy, is a recipe for dumping. That concerns automakers and it should concern the administration and Congress.”
“Automakers embrace fair competition. We’re not shrinking from it, but China’s EV overcapacity and subsidy issue is real. The competitiveness of the auto industry in the U.S. will be harmed if heavily subsidized Chinese EVs can be sold at below-market prices to U.S. consumers. It’s appropriate for the White House to be looking at tools to prevent the U.S. from becoming a dumping ground for subsidized Chinese EVs. We can’t let China’s EV overcapacity problem turn into a U.S. auto industry problem.”
As Ford Authority previously reported, tariffs on Chinese EVs are set to increase from the current rate of 25 percent all the way up to 100 percent this year, while the tariff rate on EV batteries and the raw materials that are used in their construction will over rise to 25 percent at different points in the next couple of years, depending on the type of battery.
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Comments
These new tariffs will affect some components of Ford’s electric vehicles now. So Ford has to get domestic and some imported components to keep prices down and make a profit. I read that Ford has asked some of its suppliers to help cut costs. Shame on every American who wants a Chinese or Korean car!
Ford is building EVs because the government is pushing the car company’s to do so!
The majority of U.S. car buyers don’t want them and aren’t buying them. I don’t plan on ever buying one!
We are having enough problems providing economical electricity now.