Key Points:
- Over 100 Chinese automotive and technology companies already operate inside the United States.
- Geely uses its ownership of Volvo and Polestar to access established American dealership networks.
- Volvo produced just 18,500 cars at its South Carolina plant in 2025 despite having space for 150,000.
- President Donald Trump expressed support for Chinese automakers building local factories and hiring American workers.
Politicians from both major parties want to keep Chinese cars out of the United States. Despite lawmakers imposing a massive 100% tariff on electric vehicles and threatening to ban connected cars, Chinese companies still find ways to invest in America. According to a recent survey by Dunne Insights, over 100 Chinese automakers, technology companies, and parts suppliers currently operate inside the country.
Some of the biggest names in China already hold a firm footprint on American soil. The massive Chinese automaker BYD actively builds electric buses at a factory in California. Meanwhile, the giant Chinese battery manufacturer CATL recently signed a major licensing deal with Ford Motor. Under this agreement, CATL will provide technology and services for a brand-new battery manufacturing plant located in Michigan.
One specific company holds a massive advantage over its rivals. Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, commonly known simply as Geely, positioned itself perfectly for the American market. The company owns massive stakes in three major automakers that already sell cars in the United States. These brands include Volvo Cars, Polestar, and Lotus. Geely also holds smaller investments in luxury car companies like Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin.
Owning these established brands gives Geely a very rare asset. Lotus, Polestar, and Volvo all provide Geely with active, fully functioning dealer networks across the country. Tu Le, the founder of the automotive consultancy firm Sino Auto Insights, emphasized the importance of these networks. He noted that building a reliable dealer and service infrastructure from scratch requires a massive amount of time and money. Chinese automakers without an existing presence face a huge challenge in sorting out those logistics.
Geely also holds access to highly valuable physical factory space through its ownership of Volvo. The automaker operates a massive manufacturing plant near Charleston, South Carolina. Workers at this facility currently build both Volvo and Polestar vehicles. Sam Abuelsamid, a market research executive at Telemetry Insights, noted that the factory has enough space to produce about 150,000 vehicles per year. However, the plant only produced around 18,500 cars during the 2025 calendar year.
Volvo wants to change those low production numbers and expand its American footprint. The company plans to add local production lines for its XC60 hybrid SUV, which will boost factory output by roughly 45,000 units per year. Luis Rezende, the Americas president for Volvo, explained the strategy late last year. He pointed out that Volvo currently imports about 95% of the cars it sells to American buyers.
Rezende set a clear goal for the brand’s future. He wants Volvo to increase its American sales from about 122,000 units in 2025 to a massive 200,000 units in the coming years. Furthermore, the executive wants American workers to build 50% to 60% of that new growth volume directly inside the South Carolina plant.
To help fill the empty factory space, Volvo might invite its parent company to move in. Volvo Chief Executive Officer Hakan Samuelsson recently told reporters that he feels completely open to building a Chinese vehicle at the South Carolina facility. Tu Le explained that adding a new car line to the factory makes perfect financial sense. Building more cars in one place helps the company spread out its fixed costs and reduce overall spending.
If Geely decides to bring its own cars to America, analysts believe the Zeekr brand will lead the charge. Executives from Zeekr previously stated they want to enter the American market. The brand already has a quiet presence on California roads. Waymo currently uses a custom Zeekr vehicle as the main platform for its autonomous driving fleet in San Francisco. While Waymo also plans to use Hyundai and Toyota vehicles, the Zeekr partnership gives the Chinese brand valuable testing experience.
Geely does not stand completely alone in this clever strategy. Other global automakers seek to partner with Chinese engineering teams. Stellantis, the massive parent company of Jeep, Ram, Dodge, and Chrysler, currently owns a roughly 20% stake in the Chinese automaker Leapmotor. Experts believe Stellantis has a huge opportunity to take a Chinese vehicle, slap a familiar American or Italian badge on the hood, and sell it through its massive existing dealership network.
Despite the tough talk in Washington, some political leaders welcome Chinese investment under the right conditions. President Donald Trump recently suggested he feels perfectly fine letting Chinese automakers operate in America if they build their factories locally. During a January speech in Detroit, the president said he loves the idea of foreign companies coming in, spending their money, and hiring American workers to assemble their cars.
