Politicians on both sides want to block Chinese vehicles from the United States.
But more than 100 Chinese automakers, automotive technology companies and parts suppliers already have a presence in the United States, according to a survey by Dunne Insights, a consultancy specializing in electric vehicle and autonomous markets. Although the United States imposes 100% tariffs on electric vehicles from the country and considers a rule banning Chinese connected cars from American roads, a few Chinese companies are finding ways to invest in the country.
Chinese giant BYD builds buses in California and Chinese battery maker CATL enters into a licensing deal with Ford engine to provide technology and services to a battery manufacturing operation in Michigan.
Zhejiang Geely Holding Group is a particularly well-positioned company. Geely, as it is commonly known, is investing heavily in three automakers that already do business in the United States: Volvo cars, North Star And Lotus – and more modest stakes in luxury manufacturers Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin.
The Geely advantage
Lotus, Polestar and Volvo all give Geely Holding’s U.S. dealership networks a key asset, said Tu Le, founder of automotive consulting firm Sino Auto Insights.
“Let’s not overlook the importance of a dealer network and the service infrastructure that must be able to support it, because this is not a trivial task that must be taken care of by automakers that do not have a presence in the United States,” Le said.
Geely also potentially has factory capacity in the United States through its stake in Volvo.
The Volvo plant near Charleston, South Carolina, makes Volvo and Polestar cars. The factory is large enough to make about 150,000 vehicles, but in 2025 it will only produce about 18,500, said Sam Abuelsamid, vice president of market research at Telemetry Insights, citing Marklines data. Volvo said it would increase U.S. production of its XC60 hybrid SUV, adding about 45,000 units per year.
Volvo wants to expand its presence in the United States. The company’s president for the Americas, Luis Rezende, told CNBC in December that Volvo imports about 95% of the cars sold in the United States. The company plans to increase its U.S. sales to about 200,000 units, up from about 122,000 in 2025. Volvo wants 50 to 60 percent of that growth volume to be manufactured in the United States, Rezende said.
Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson reportedly said late last month that he would be willing to use it for a Chinese vehicle, according to Business Insider.
“Locating production there would actually reduce costs or amortize fixed costs over a larger number of units,” Le said.
American expansion?
The name Geely may refer to the holding company that owns stakes in Volvo, Polestar and others, or to the publicly traded Chinese automotive subsidiary Geely Auto, which includes Chinese brands Zeekr, Lynk & Co and the Geely brand.
Among its Chinese brands, Zeekr is a likely candidate to lead a U.S. expansion, analysts say. Already, Waymo uses a Zeekr vehicle as a platform for its autonomous fleet in San Francisco. The company continues to use the Jaguar I-Pace and also plans to use cars from Hyundai and Toyota. Waymo declined CNBC’s request for comment.
“Zeekr executives have said they want to bring the Zeekr brand to the U.S. market,” Abuelsamid said. “Among the Geely Group brands, it is the most likely.”
He may be among the best, but he’s not totally alone, Le said. Stellantis – which owns the Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler brands – has a roughly 20% stake in Chinese automaker Leapmotor.
“There is another opportunity to rebadge an existing vehicle, like a Fiat, or something more familiar to Americans, and there is already an infrastructure in place,” Le said.
And while there is strong bipartisan opposition to Chinese automakers, President Donald Trump has suggested he would favor Chinese automakers building in the United States.
“Now, if they want to come and build a factory and hire you and hire your friends and your neighbors, that’s great,” the president said of foreign automakers in a January speech to the Detroit Economic Club. “I love it. Let’s let China in. Let’s let Japan in. They’re doing it, and they’ll build factories, but they’re using our labor force.”