Howard Lutnick shut down the conversation
by Colm Murphy
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick ruled out Chinese investment in the US auto industry, saying there is no need for companies like electric car maker BYD Co in the US.
When asked during a heated exchange at a Semaphore event in Washington on Friday whether a joint venture factory by BYD was on the table, the Commerce Secretary gave a one-word answer – “No” – drawing laughter from the audience.
Lutnick later elaborated on the same event, noting that BYD was specifically mentioned in the moderator’s question. “We will not keep them here,” he told Bloomberg News.
When pressed on the possibility of other Chinese companies investing in the US, the Commerce Secretary said, “No cars, no cars.”
During recent trade talks between the US and China in Paris between Jameson Greer, US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant and China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng, the two sides discussed the creation of a trade board and also discussed the creation of an investment board.
That March meeting was intended to set the stage for a summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which is expected to take place May 14-15.
But earlier this month, Greer appeared to downplay the prospect of promoting broader investment between the two countries. “I don’t think we’re at the point in our relationship with the Chinese where we want to talk about investment programs in any way,” the top US trade official said.
And last week, Greer made similar comments to Lutnick, saying restrictions on foreign technology will keep Chinese carmakers out of the US for the foreseeable future.
US automakers are also warning about Chinese cars ahead of the Trump-Xi meeting. Leaders of five U.S. auto industry groups wrote in a March letter that Beijing’s efforts to “dominate” the global auto industry and gain access to the U.S. “pose a direct threat to America’s global competitiveness, national security, and automotive industrial base.”
Nevertheless, Trump has said he is open to the possibility of investment by Asian countries in the American car industry. Speaking in Detroit earlier this year, he said if Chinese automakers wanted to build plants in the U.S., he would “love it.”
