Politicians on both sides of the aisle want to block Chinese vehicles from the United States.
But over 100 Chinese automakers, auto tech companies, and parts suppliers already have a presence in the U.S., according to a survey done by Dunne Insights, a consultancy that focuses on electric vehicles and autonomous markets. Despite the United States implementing a 100% tariff on EVs from the country and considering a rule banning Chinese connected cars from U.S. roads, a few Chinese companies are finding ways to invest in the country.
Chinese behemoth BYD builds buses in California, and Chinese battery maker CATL has struck a licensing deal with Ford Motor to offer tech and services for a battery manufacturing operation in Michigan.
One especially well-positioned company is Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. Geely, as it is commonly known, has large investments in three automakers already doing business in the U.S. — Volvo Cars, Polestar and Lotus — and smaller stakes in luxury makers Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin.
Geely’s advantage
Lotus, Polestar and Volvo all give Geely Holding dealer networks in the U.S. — a key asset, said Tu Le, founder of automotive consultancy firm Sino Auto Insights.
“Let’s not discount how important a dealer network is and the service infrastructure that needs to be able to support that, because that’s not an insignificant task that needs to be sorted out by the automakers that do not have a presence in the United States,” Le said.
Geely also potentially has U.S. factory capacity through its Volvo stake.
The Volvo factory near Charleston, South Carolina, makes both Volvo and Polestar cars. The plant is big enough to make about 150,000 vehicles, but in 2025, it only produced about 18,500, said Sam Abuelsamid, vice president of market research at Telemetry Insights, citing data from Marklines. Volvo has said it is adding U.S. production of its XC60 hybrid SUV, which would add about 45,000 units per year.
Volvo does want to expand its U.S. footprint. The company’s Americas president, Luis Rezende, told CNBC in December that Volvo was importing about 95% of the cars it sold in the U.S.. The company plans to boost U.S. sales to about 200,000 units, from about 122,000 in 2025. Volvo wants 50% to 60% of that growth volume to be U.S.-made, Rezende said.
Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson reportedly said late last month that he would be open to using it for a Chinese vehicle, according to Business Insider.
“Putting production there would actually reduce costs or it would amortize the fixed costs over more units,” Le said.
U.S. expansion?
The name Geely can refer to the holding company that has stakes in Volvo, Polestar and the rest, or the publicly traded Chinese subsidiary automaker Geely Auto, which consists of the Chinese brands Zeekr, Lynk & Co, and the brand Geely.
Of its Chinese brands, Zeekr is a likely candidate to spearhead a U.S. expansion, analysts said. Already, Waymo is using a Zeekr vehicle as a platform for its self-driving fleet in San Francisco. The company continues to use the Jaguar I-Pace and plans to use cars from Hyundai and Toyota as well. Waymo declined CNBC’s request for a comment.
“Executives from Zeekr have said that they want to introduce the Zeekr brand into the U.S. market,” Abuelsamid said. “Of the Geely Group brands, that is the most likely one.”
It might be among the best positioned, but it isn’t totally alone, Le said. Stellantis — which owns the Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler brands — has a roughly 20% stake in Chinese automaker Leapmotor.
“There’s another opportunity to rebadge an existing vehicle, such as a Fiat, or something that’s more familiar to Americans, and there’s already an infrastructure in place,” Le said.
And though there is stiff bipartisan opposition to Chinese automakers, President Donald Trump has suggested he would be amenable to Chinese automakers building in the U.S.
“Now, if they want to come in and build a plant and hire you and hire your friends and your neighbors, that’s great,” the president said about foreign automakers in a January speech at the Detroit Economic Club. “I love that. Let China come in. Let Japan come in. They are, and they’ll be building plants, but they’re using our labor.”
