In the midst of evolving electrification strategies among automakers and other shifts in the EV market, politicians are weighing in with new policies that will likely have a substantial impact on the burgeoning all-electric segment. That includes hefty tariffs announced by the Biden administration in May taking aim at inexpensive, Chinese-made EVs. Now, Canada is following suit with its own round of tariffs.
Tesla Model 3
Per a report from Reuters, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is moving to impose a 100-percent tariff on new Chinese-made EVs. The new tariffs will take effect October 1st, 2024. In addition, Canada will also implement a 25-percent tariff on Chinese-made steel and aluminum. The move aligns with actions taken by the United States and the European Union to counter China’s state-directed overproduction policies.
“I think we all know that China is not playing by the same rules,” Trudeau recently told reports.
“What is important about this is we’re doing it in alignment and in parallel with other economies around the world,” the Prime Minister reportedly said during a cabinet meeting in Nova Scotia.
Tesla Model Y
The decision was announced amid a significant increase in Chinese EV imports to Canada, which surged by 460 percent in 2023. At present, the only Chinese-made EVs imported to Canada are the Tesla Model 3 sedan and Model Y crossover. Tesla’s shares dropped 3.2 percent following the announcement, with analysts suggesting the company might shift to either its U.S. production base or German production base with regard to Canadian exports.
Canada is reportedly also considering further measures as well, including tariffs on microchips and solar cells, as the country’s domestic industry calls for additional protections. GM Canada previously welcomed the country’s moves to implement large tariffs on Chinese-made EVs.
Tesla Model Y
Back in May, the Biden administration announced a 100-percent tariff on Chinese-made EVs, as well as tariff hikes on other Chinese-made goods, such as graphite and permanent magnet materials, both of which are critical to EV production, plus solar cells.
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Comments
I have no problem with the Chinese selling in the US (I personally won’t buy one as long as their party members and company execs who happen to also be party members, label me, an American just trying to get by in life, as their enemy and have this arrogant attitude looking down on me as an American). The more options the merrier and I do admit, some cars like NIO strike my curiosity. But while tariffs technically doesn’t ban them from selling here, if you want to sell here, build them here. Prove to us you are serious about mutually benefiting each other.
Canada finally did something I can agree with.
The Chinese forced global automakers to build in China or be tariffed strongly. Also, all global automakers, except Tesla, are forced into joint ventures where the Chinese company has at least 50.1% ownership. The problem with this is the Chinese company can steal IP and then sell a similar vehicle. It’s what happened to MB with BYD stealing their stuff, among others. Then you have the CCP subsidizing $230 billion to the Chinese auto industry, then you have a monopolistic environment that will only deal pain to competitors. And remember, $230 billion goes a lot farther in China. They don’t pay their engineers $200k per year. And also remember, a new vehicle for the US market may cost a company like GM $2 billion to develop, tool, and get to the dealers.
I’m actually in Thailand right now on vacation. Think what you want? I see a lot of BYD on the streets and I’ve seen the Great Wall Ora Good Cat. BYD looks like something from Korea or Land Rover. Not bad looking but very suspect quality, especially in such a hot country like Thailand. The Ora Good Cat is cool looking and very unique, but sooo Asian. It looks like a egg shaped CUV styled by Pininfarina. The problem with these dumping of subsidized China EVs is that Thailand lost Chevy in 2020, 4 days before the pandemic (Maybe Mary was informed early?). They also lost Subaru and Suzuki. And word is that companies such as Honda and Mazda are laying people off. This has hurt the Thai auto worker. And it has also hurt the global makers in China, such as GM that have seen there volume halve in the past 4 years.
The fact that it takes BYD just no more than two years to develop a new vehicle (which they boast as an amazing feat) leaves me to wonder about the true nature of their long term quality. To me, I see a car that was rushed through with little to no long term quality and safety testing involved other than just enough to pass EuroNCAP and give the car some decent materials to make them look high quality. But once they sell you the car, its not their problem anymore and in a country where the government covers up accountability and responds with buying their way out of it or deflecting blame away (which party members run or own these companies) it doesn’t leave me with a warm fuzzy feeling inside. There is a reason, regardless of where in the world they come from be it America, Japan, Korea, Germany, or UK, cars take minimum 3-4 years to develop. There is no bypassing the red tape needed to make a long lasting and safe product.
The 996 working hour system (Chinese: 996工作制) is a work schedule practiced by many companies in China. It derives its name from its requirement that employees work from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm, 6 days per week; i.e. 72 hours per week, 12 hours per day.
The 996 work culture is seen by its supporters as a driving force behind this success. The belief is that by working longer hours, employees can dedicate more time to problem-solving, creativity, and collaborative efforts, ultimately leading to breakthrough innovations.
Lazy azz Yankees only work 37.5
https://gmauthority.com/blog/2024/08/zeekr-executive-disses-cadillac-the-glory-of-detroit-is-no-more/
“The electric age, the rise of China, the glory of Detroit is no more,” wrote Zeekr vice president Zhu Ling. “It’s faster than you, it’s smarter than you, it’s younger than you, and it’s more affordable than you.”
Faster at pissing off their customers it seems.