The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[DewDiligence]

China’s auto market looms as a trade flashpoint:

https://www.wsj.com/articles/auto-makers-target-china-as-new-u-s-trade-rules-loom-1490175002

Top auto makers, facing the threat of costly North American trade policy changes, want the Trump administration to take a harder line on a market thousands of miles from their home turf.

China’s car business is attractive to outsiders chasing sales growth, but rules protecting local companies dent profits of global auto giants and force them to share technology with potential rivals. The 25% tariff on vehicle imports makes U.S.-built automobiles too expensive for most buyers in the world’s largest auto market.

…China’s restrictions, set in 2001 when it entered the World Trade Organization, are outdated, industry players say. Once considered necessary for an emerging market, they now disproportionately distort automotive trade...

President Donald Trump has said he wants to level the playing field with China on trade, threatening steep tariffs. Beijing sees its auto industry as a strategic asset, and a battle over trade barriers could lead to a standoff.

I do not own any auto stocks.