Ford denies reported talks with Geely to bring China tech to US
Trump administration officials appear reluctant to remove current barriers to Chinese cars
Published Sat, Apr 25, 2026 · 12:38 PM — Updated Sat, Apr 25, 2026 · 01:02 PM
[DETROIT] Ford Motor denied a news report that it has held talks with Geely Automobile about bringing Chinese car technology to the US market.
A Ford spokesperson told Bloomberg News that no such talks have happened or are happening with any Chinese carmaker about technology sharing or platform sharing in the US.
A Geely representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Wall Street Journal earlier on Friday (Apr 24) reported that Ford and Geely had previously discussed potentially extending a European tie-up the companies are negotiating to America. The discussions began last year but have stalled in recent months, the newspaper said, citing sources familiar with the matter that it did not identify.
Ford has held discussions with Geely involving the Chinese company potentially using an underutilised plant in Spain that’s owned by the US carmaker, Bloomberg reported in February.
Those talks are ongoing, according to sources familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified, discussing private plans. There are no discussions underway involving the US market, the sources said.
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The prospect of China entering the US auto industry has drawn growing attention as companies such as Geely and BYD have expanded around the world and gained footholds in US neighbours Mexico and Canada.
But Chinese carmakers face significant barriers, including steep tariffs on their electric vehicles and technology prohibitions, that have effectively shut them out of the US market.
US auto executives view China’s carmakers as an existential threat due to their tech-laden, low-cost vehicles that have benefited from significant government support.
Ford CEO Jim Farley last week said allowing China’s automakers to sell their vehicles in the US would be “devastating” to domestic manufacturing.
“We should not let them into our country,” Farley said on Apr 13.
Farley separately told reporters days later that US government and industry leaders need to “really figure out our policy” on how Chinese automakers could eventually be granted access to the US market.
“Having a plan before we go fast, either on local production or on imports into the US from China, is the most important moment,” Farley said. “We are in that moment right now.”
Trump administration officials appear reluctant to remove current barriers to Chinese cars. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick earlier this month dismissed the possibility of Chinese investment in the US auto industry.
“We are not going to have them here,” Lutnick said. BLOOMBERG
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