Ford's CEO Imported a Chinese Sedan and Won't Give It Back
You're probably using Chinese products right now and have no idea.
GE Appliances, the washers and refrigerators in tens of millions of American kitchens, was sold to Haier in 2016 for 5.6 billion dollars. Under the deal, Haier can use the GE brand name until 2056.
That means for thirty more years, you can buy a GE-branded appliance, feel like you're supporting a domestic legacy brand, and be operating a Chinese product. The Lenovo ThinkPad? That's been Chinese since 2005, when Lenovo bought IBM's PC division. Lenovo now outsells HP and Dell.
Volvo is Chinese-owned. Geely bought it from Ford in 2010. Polestar is Chinese, also owned by Geely. BYD Electronics is the original equipment manufacturer for Apple's iPad, meaning the company competing with Tesla also assembles tablets for Apple.
Even Tesla runs increasingly on CATL or BYD battery cells. CATL holds 38 percent of the global EV battery market. BYD holds another 17 percent. Together with other Chinese suppliers, China controls 69 percent. Every premium German sedan advertising German engineering runs on a Chinese battery.
The geography of the average American driveway has been Chinese for years. The brands just haven't let you notice.