President Donald Trump spooked the US automobile industry last month when he told business leaders during a visit to Detroit that he would “love” if Chinese carmakers built plants in the US, creating jobs and hiring “your friends and your neighbours”.
His comments, coupled with hints by Geely that it could enter the US market within the next three years, have put American auto executives on edge over the possibility that the world’s second-largest car market could soon have cut-throat competition with Chinese rivals that has swept across Europe, south-east Asia and Latin America.
“Assuming that the Chinese are given the opportunity to come into the US, they will bring a very competitive model that will challenge not just the Detroit original equipment makers, but also the Japanese, European and Korean OEMs in this market,” said David Dauch, CEO of Dauch Corp, the auto supplier created from the merger between American Axle & Manufacturing and UK’s Dowlais.