Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has spoken out against US tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs). Musk made his comments during a technology conference in Paris, where he appeared via video link. “Neither Tesla nor I asked for these tariffs,” Musk said. “Things that inhibit freedom of exchange or distort the market are not good.” Musk’s stance is a change from his position in January, when he warned that Chinese car companies would “demolish” foreign competitors if trade barriers were removed. Now, Musk is advocating for a free market approach. “Tesla competes quite well in the market in China with no tariffs and no deferential support. I’m in favor of no tariffs,” he said.
Musk calls for tariff-free EV market
The Biden administration has kept many of the tariffs on China that were put in place by former President Donald Trump. Last week, President Biden promised to stop China from “unfairly controlling the market” for EVs and other important products like batteries, computer chips, and medical supplies. China has said it will take action against the higher tariffs. China has announced an investigation into imports of a widely used plastic in electronics and cars from the US, EU, Taiwan, and Japan. This is seen as a sign that China could strike back in its trade disputes with the US and Europe. China has also said it might put tariffs of up to 25% on cars with large engines imported from the EU and US. The European Commission, which handles the EU’s trade policies, has set a July 4 deadline to decide whether to take action against imports of Chinese-made EVs. This decision could make the trade tensions between China, the US, and the EU even worse.
April Isaacs is a news contributor for DevX.com She is long-term, self-proclaimed nerd. She loves all things tech and computers and still has her first Dreamcast system. It is lovingly named Joni, after Joni Mitchell.
