Congress: Take note of GM plan to import Chinese cars

Congress: Take note of GM plan to import Chinese cars

Let’s look at the announcement by General Motors that it intends to import cars made in China — as many as 50,000 a year by 2014 — as an opportunity. It is an opportunity for Congress to take a very hard look at whether American-made automotive products are being treated fairly on the world market.

We can tell you they are not. Large Asian exporters of cars to the United States — Korea and Japan — are happy to take advantage of our open markets, while building barriers that make it nearly impossible to sell an American-made product in their countries. The last thing the United States needs is a third such trading “partner.”

GM needs a viable entry level car, and that car is going to carry the Chevrolet bow tie. It’s not going to be made in the United States; the present entry-level Aveo is made in Korea.

And Chevrolet needs an attractive entry-level vehicle if it is going to rebuild market share. The Cruze that will be built in Lordstown is well above an entry-level car. It will need to attract buyers from other brands, and it will need loyal Chevrolet buyers who have been brought to the brand by a good entry-level product.

The disparity

During the first three months of this year, the United States exported $16.1 billion in automotive vehicles and parts worldwide, while it imported nearly twice that amount, $30.2 billion. That’s been the trading pattern in recent years.

Congress must ask whether that disparity represents an overwhelming urge by U.S. customers to buy foreign cars or are U.S. products being priced out of foreign markets by tariffs, currency manipulation or other artificial barriers.

The world automotive market is a complicated place where, for instance, a plant in Australia turns out a Pontiac model for export to the United States and a Buick for export to China. Simple question: what’s the tariff on the G8 when it enters the United States and the Park Avenue when it gets to China?

If the United States welcomes imports, including 50,000 low-end models from China or Korea, then an equal value of U.S. vehicles should be allowed into China or Korea on the same terms. Thousands of American-made niche vehicles, such as Corvettes or high-performance Cadillac XLR, STS and CTS V-series models, or Ohio-made Acuras (or Harley-Davidson motorcycles) should find eager buyers among Asia’s emerging affluent class. If the showroom floor is level.

It’s about fairness — and trimming the automotive trade deficit that is costing American jobs.