What’s new: President Joe Biden reiterated that the United States will invest heavily to prevent China from dominating the global electric vehicle (EV) industry, underscoring Washington’s intention to compete fiercely with the Asian giant on emerging and climate-friendly technologies.
“They think they’re going to win,” Biden said of China during a speech to promote his flagship jobs program at a car factory in Michigan. “Well, I got news for them: They will not win this race. We can’t let them.”
China is leveraging its status as the world’s largest and fastest-growing EV market to corner the global battery sector, even though the U.S. pioneered much of the technology powering the cells, Biden said.
The background: Biden has touted his American Jobs Plan, which would invest $2 trillion in infrastructure, manufacturing and research over the next decade, as a way of aiding the U.S.’ economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The plan includes a $174 billion investment “to win the EV market,” which is currently only one-third the size of China’s. Some 1.3 million EVs were sold in China last year, accounting for 41% of global sales, according to research firm Canalys.
Contact reporter Matthew Walsh (matthewwalsh@caixin.com) and editor Joshua Dummer (joshuadummer@caixin.com)
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