Senator Marco Rubio Wants To Prevent Chinese Automakers from Selling Vehicles Built in Other Countries

The United States government has pulled out massive tariffs in an attempt to prevent Chinese automakers from flooding the market with cheap vehicles, but the country’s industry has found loopholes that could help it get around those actions, including manufacturing vehicles in other countries. One Senator recently proposed legislation that could block Chinese automakers from selling vehicles manufactured in other countries, evading U.S. tariffs.

Florida Senator Marco Rubio said that Chinese companies are setting up manufacturing locations in Malaysia, Mexico, and Vietnam, which could help them sidestep U.S. tariffs that reach 100 percent in some cases.

This isn’t Rubio’s first foray into tariffs. Earlier this year, he proposed extending the tariffs on Chinese vehicles produced in other countries. His actions and similar steps taken by the Biden administration are due to what a U.S. manufacturing advocacy group called an “extinction-level event for the U.S. auto sector” if our markets are flooded by Chinese vehicles.

Chinese automakers have so far stayed on the sidelines of the U.S. market, though Geely’s Volvo and Lotus are sold here. BYD is building a factory in Mexico to manufacture pickups and other vehicles, and the country already has several Chinese-branded vehicles on its streets.

While Chinese vehicles have been largely held in lower regard than domestic and other automakers in the U.S., companies are coming around to the dangers presented by the country's auto industry. Ford CEO Jim Farley recently test-drove a handful of Chinese vehicles and was impressed, noting that American automakers have a lot of work ahead of them to compete.

[Images: Trevor Collens, Hendra yuwana, Yudi Kobo via Shutterstock]

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