Source: https://insideclimatenews.org/news/16082026/china-evs-dominate-south-america-market/
Summary
Chinese electric vehicles have flooded South American markets, where an EV market was once almost non-existent, Chinese company BYD has dominated with an almost 90% market share of EVs in Argentina, for example. China fills in a crucial gap in the Argentine market, with libertarian policies in the country opening the country with a lack of restrictive tariffs, BYD is able to deliver cheap EVs to the developing nation. This is amid increased oil prices as a result of the Iran conflict and increased climate awareness, BYD saw an untapped market largely ignored by other manufacturers. Even more, this development has fundamentally transformed how Argentinians see cars, from a luxury item to a facet of everyday life.
Analysis
The Chinese EV industry in general has received hostility from the US based industrial bloc, with the previous Biden administration installing a 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles to protect domestic manufacturers. This appeases both domestic manufacturers and hundreds of thousands Americans that would be out of a job with the introduction of Chinese EVs to domestic markets. Milei’s Argentina, on the other hand, instituted a tariff free import quota for 50,000 EVs which incentivized BYD’s venture in the first place. He likely saw low cost foreign imports as a way to bring down vehicle prices for consumers amid rampant inflation. Big picture, this move by BYD represents an encroachment upon the American hemisphere. Is the Chinese Century upon us?
China enjoys an economic victory over the Americans. US and South American car manufacturers are likely seething. The US may open its doors to domestic manufacturing of Chinese vehicles, per a comment made by President Trump on Friday. Argentina drifts closer to Beijing, despite initial staunch support for Milei by President Trump. Out of this, the average south american enjoys the virtues of cheap foreign electric vehicles.
Connection
This industry development, involving a heavily subsidized private corporation breaking into an untapped market of a very laissez faire government, thus showing that non-state actors will act upon states if they have incentive and ability to do so. And by virtue of the fact that said corporate actor, BYD, proceeds from the Chinese economic bloc rivaling that of the United States and its corporations, now a completely new set of interests have a stake in BYD’s new South American venture which in part owes its success to the increased gas prices as a result of the US Iran war.