
Chinese car giants rush into Brazil with dreams of dominating a continent
Its goal is to reinvent the way Brazil drives, and ultimately, the rest of Latin America, much as Chinese automakers have already done across much of Asia and want to do in Europe.
Until recently, this factory was run by Mercedes-Benz, the German giant of 20th century automotive innovation that churned out cars powered by gasoline. Today, it's owned by Great Wall Motor, a company that is now one of China's leading exporters of stylish, affordable electric vehicles.
The change in hands reflects a profound disruption for one of the world's most vital industries. If American and European gas-guzzling cars once dominated global tastes and trends, that era appears to be fast turning to China's favor.
Today, not only does China make and export more cars of all types than any other country in the world, Chinese firms dominate the global manufacture of battery-powered vehicles of the future. They also control the supply chain for virtually everything that goes into those cars.
China's EV s are among the most advanced in the world. Some today go as far on a single charge as top-of-the-line Teslas, at lower prices. One Chinese carmaker, BYD, short for Build Your Dreams, has developed technology that can deliver a full charge in just five minutes.
Little wonder that Tesla sales in China are lagging, and that the United States, under both Presidents Joe Biden and
Donald Trump
, have essentially banned Chinese car imports.
For China, that leaves the rest of the world.
Its electric and hybrid manufacturers have set up, or are in the process of setting up, factories in Hungary, Indonesia, Russia, Thailand and Turkey. These efforts, including Great Wall's Brazilian factory, are part of a globe-spanning campaign by China to seize a major share of the world's auto industry, a powerful source of revenues, jobs and also national prestige.
Western auto giants are alarmed.
"We are in a global competition with China," Jim Farley, the CEO of
Ford
Motor Co., said at the Aspen Ideas conference in June. "It's not just EVs. And if we lose this, we do not have a future at Ford."
Great Wall Motor took over the Mercedes plant in the industrial town of Iracemápolis, near São Paulo, after the German carmaker closed shop in 2021, blaming a slump in luxury car sales. BYD took over a Ford factory after years of poor sales and steep losses forced the U.S. car giant to end its long history of manufacturing in Brazil.
Farley at the time called the closures "difficult but necessary actions." Ford had assembled cars in Brazil for a century, starting with the Model T.
"For the first time in decades, we're seeing a real challenge to the dominance of American and European brands, not just in terms of market share, but in shaping the future of mobility," said
Natalie Unterstell
, president of a climate research and advocacy organization called Talanoa Institute, based in Rio de Janeiro.
Brazil, the world's sixth largest car market, is trying to take advantage of it, instead of being steamrolled. It's prodding companies, no matter where they're from, to make cars on Brazilian soil, the less polluting the better, while also imposing steadily rising tariffs on imports.
It hasn't all been smooth sailing. There have been union clashes over Chinese labor practices. But the government's overall message: If you want access to our car buyers, then come and create factories and factory jobs here.
"We don't want to be an importer of technologies produced in other countries only," said
Rafael Dubeux
, special adviser to the Finance Ministry, in an interview in Brazil's capital, Brasília. "We also want to take advantage of this profound change in the world, in manufacturing facilities, so that Brazil also has a part in the value chains that we think are the ones that will prevail."
At least three Chinese firms are opening assembly plants in Brazil. In addition to Great Wall Motor and BYD, another Chinese automaker, Chery, has teamed up with a Brazilian company, Caoa, to produce cars in central Goias state.
Nevertheless, Marcio Lima Leite, head of the Brazil automaker association, remains worried. The new Chinese auto plants are mainly assembling cars with components imported from China, including the most valuable component, batteries. That, he said, will not advance the industry in Brazil.
"It's very important to have competitiveness in Brazil, to produce the new technology in Brazil," he said.
Chinese carmakers have had to bend to local needs in important ways. In Brazil, that means the needs of the powerful ethanol industry. Ethanol is produced from the country's huge sugar cane crop, and Brazilian law requires every liter of gasoline to be a little more than 25% ethanol.
So the auto companies aren't just making fully electric cars in Brazil. They are also having to make hybrids that run partly on the gas-ethanol blend and partly on batteries. "We need to produce what customers are looking for," said
Marcio Renato Alfonso
, a Brazilian who worked for an American carmaker for many years and is now Great Wall's director of research and development for Brazil. "High technology with an affordable price."
Along Henry Ford Avenue
in the industrial city of Camaçari, what was once a Ford factory is now becoming a BYD factory.
This had been Ford's newest plant. Every day, starting in 2001, it churned out hundreds of gas-powered cars. It employed some 5,000 workers. It also lost huge amounts of money.
In 2021, the Ford plant shut down.
"It was a shock," said Júlio Bonfim, who was president of the metal workers union at the factory. "I imagined my son would also work at the plant. It didn't happen."
The state government offered BYD a basket of incentives to take over the plant. But almost as soon as the Chinese company arrived, it got enmeshed in a labor scandal.
In December, Brazilian officials accused BYD's contractor, Jinjiang Construction Group, with keeping 163 Chinese workers in "conditions akin to slavery" and in violation of Brazilian labor laws. It embodied the reckoning that Chinese companies face as they seek to expand in Brazil, which has robust unions.
The workers were sent back home. Construction slowed down. Company officials said they expect to start production later this year. When it does, Bonfim's union insists that Brazilians must be hired to work the line. It has threatened to strike if Chinese workers are brought in.
BYD's top executive for Brazil,
Alexandre Baldy
, said the firm had taken steps to address the violations. In May the labor prosecutor's office filed charges against the carmaker and its contractors for human trafficking. The company said it plans to challenge the charges.
In the meantime, the Great Wall factory in Iracemápolis will almost assuredly already be fully operational. An opening ceremony is planned for August. Cars are due to roll off the factory floor soon after.
The factory first plans to produce one hybrid model and three plug-in hybrids.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)

First Post
21 minutes ago
- First Post
Witkoff in Israel to discuss Gaza crisis after Trump cites ‘hungry children' to refute Netanyahu claims
Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff is heading to Israel amid reports of starvation coming out of Gaza. This will be Witkoff's first known visit to Israel since May read more US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff speaks to members of the news media with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt outside of the West Wing at the White House in Washington, US, on March 6, 2025. Reuters File US President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, is heading to Israel amid mounting international anger over the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. US officials close to the matter, told the New York Times, that this will be Witkoff's first known visit to Israel since May, when the United States negotiated the release of the last living American-Israeli hostage held by Hamas in Gaza. This time, Witkoff is expected to arrive in Israel under grim circumstances. The visit is coming at a time when widespread hunger has gripped the Gaza Strip, with thousands suffering from starvation. The World Food Program said that more than one in three Palestinians are not eating for multiple consecutive days. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Meanwhile, Gaza health officials say that dozens of people, including children, have died of starvation in recent weeks. Witkoff's visit came a week after Trump publicly acknowledged starvation in Gaza, breaking away from the narrative proposed by Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who outrightly denied it was occurring. 'That's real starvation stuff, I see it, and you can't fake that,' Trump said on Monday. West raises concerns over Gaza crisis Witkoff has been the Trump administration's leading negotiator when it comes to reaching a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which will also entail the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. However, those talks stalled last week. Meanwhile, the devastating conditions in the coastal enclave have prompted a global outcry in Israel over the past several days. Last week, France announced it would recognise the state of Palestine, a move followed — albeit conditionally — by Britain. In the midst of this, a coalition of about 30 countries, including some of Israel's traditional allies, called last week for an immediate end to the war. More than 60,000 people have now been killed in Israel's campaign against Hamas in Gaza, which has been raging on since the Palestinian group's surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
&w=3840&q=100)

Business Standard
21 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Higher US tariffs may trim India's GDP growth by 30 bps: Barclays
The 25 per cent US tariffs, plus a penalty for Russian imports, could dent India's GDP growth by 30 basis points in the current fiscal, but the higher duty is unlikely to significantly affect India's domestic demand-driven economy, Barclays said on Thursday. If the 25 per cent tariff, announced by US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, is implemented from August 1, the effective average US import tariff on Indian goods will rise to 20.6 per cent in trade-weighted terms, as per Barclays estimates. This is sharply higher than both the pre 'liberation day' tariff rate of 2.7 per cent and the 90-day pause tariff rate of 11.6 per cent. In contrast, India's import tariff on US goods is lower, at 11.6 per cent in trade-weighted terms. Barclays said that given the relatively closed nature of the Indian economy, wherein domestic demand is the mainstay of growth. "We do not see this 25 per cent tariff threat impacting GDP growth meaningfully, pegging the likely impact at 30 bp. We expect final tariffs on India to settle in lower than the announced 25 per cent, as India and the US continue with trade deal talks," it said. Indian economy is projected to grow at 6.5 per cent by the Reserve Bank-- same as last fiscal, while the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) peg growth at 6.4 per cent and 6.5 per cent respectively. At 25 per cent, tariffs on India are higher than EM Asian peers, but Barclays expect final tariffs to settle lower as trade deal talks progress. Echoing similar views, Moody's Analytics Associate Economist Aditi Raman said while the US is India's largest trade partner, the Indian economy is relatively more domestically oriented than most of the region and relies far less on trade. "Pharmaceuticals, gems, and textiles are key sectors that are likely to be hit. A point of contention is market access to the key agricultural and dairy sector, which India has historically been reluctant to grant," Raman said. Barclays further said, India is already diversifying its sources of oil supply. Should the additional 'penalty' threat materialise, we expect Indian refiners to pivot towards alternate suppliers, especially as the discount on imports of Russian oil has already narrowed. To diversify its export base, the Indian administration is showcasing a renewed zeal to ink free-trade agreements with other countries and regions. "Amid heightened global trade policy uncertainty, having a pipeline of such bilateral trade agreements is a prudent policy choice," Barclays said. India has recently inked an FTA with the US and the EFTA bloc, and it is negotiating with a number of countries, including the European Union, Oman and New Zealand. The US is India's largest trading partner, accounting for 18 per cent of India's total merchandise exports in 2024. India's USD 80 billion merchandise exports to the US are distributed in sectors which also form India's overall major exports. India's top exports to the US, electrical machinery (USD 12 billion, including smartphones), and gems and jewellery (USD 9 billion) now face tariff increases of just over 24 percentage points, compared with levels before April 2. On the rupee, Barclays said that although more pain is expected in the near term, the drop in INR vis--vis USD still looks overdone. The INR, which had already been under pressure over recent weeks, fell sharply on the tariff news, hitting a low weaker than 87.50 versus USD. "We think the rupee is looking oversold in the short term. Clearly, USDINR has bounced more than anticipated, but we think the February high of just under 88.0 remains a strong resistance level," Barclays said.


Mint
21 minutes ago
- Mint
Nifty 50 tends to gain in August, shows 10-year history. Can the trend sustain amid Trump's tariff curveball?
Indian stock market: Benchmark indices paused for breath in July after a stellar multi-month rally, as disappointing corporate earnings and persistent foreign outflows weighed on sentiment. Investor caution was further heightened by uncertainty around a potential trade deal, which ultimately failed to meet expectations. US President Donald Trump threw a curveball in the form of a 25% tariff on imports, along with a warning of unspecified penalties for energy and defence-related purchases from Russia. This promoted worries that August, which is generally a positive month for the Indian stock market, may see tempered gains as global headwinds and cautious investor sentiment persist. Historically, July and August are among the most seasonally positive months for Indian equities. The Nifty 50 index has shown a positive trend during the month of August, delivering gains in six out of the past 10 years, according to data from JM Financial, with a median return of 1.4%. While markets bucked the trend in July, declining 1.7% so far (till July 30), analysts believe that while August may be characterised by volatility, it is likely to exhibit a positive trend. Harshal Dasani, Business Head, INVasset PMS, said that August could present a turnaround. With the ambiguity around the US–India trade stance gradually resolving — even if via an adverse outcome like tariff escalation — the market may begin to stabilise, Dasani said, adding that historically, equities consolidate when the 'event risk' transitions into known outcomes. Ashish Chaturmohta, Managing Director & Fund Manager, Apex PMS, JM Financial, also opined that despite some weakness in July 2025, primarily due to a softer outlook from the IT sector and elevated provisioning in the BFSI segment, the outlook for August remains constructive. His optimism is supported by above-average monsoon rainfall and improved reservoir levels, which are expected to boost rural demand and support agriculture, and a decent earnings season. "External environment, particularly the US tariff on Indian exports, remains the key monitorable and could influence market sentiments. Overall, the market sentiment for August 2025 appears positive and aligned with historical averages," said Chaturmohta. While analysts foresee an impact of Trump's tariff threat on export-heavy sectors, barring a full-blown trade war, they see limited downside. Emkay Global, in a note today, said that although trade talks appear to have stalled, we believe this saga is far from over. "Beyond pure economics, such negotiations carry significant geopolitical weight. Despite a potential shift in the balance of negotiation power, we believe both sides are still likely to push for a deal soon," it said. India's exports to the US are only 2% of GDP, with much lower value-added embedded in them. According to Emkay's estimates, previous static analysis suggests that India's US exports could drop by $30-33 bn (0.8-0.9% of GDP) at 25%+ tariffs, not adjusting for the complexity of dynamic cross-country hits/responses. While the announcement adds some downside tail risk, it is too early to consider actual forecast changes, it added. "In fact, with the rupee stabilising near ₹ 87.5 and Brent crude easing below $73, key macro stressors seem priced in. The geopolitical risk premium is also no longer expanding. Given that the uncertainty has peaked, and past Augusts tend to favour bulls, we could now see a shift from risk-off to recalibration mode—especially if global yields cool," Dasani added. As the market is expected to be volatile amid event-driven swings, Khushi Mistry, Research Analyst at Bonanza, advised adopting a cautious and selective approach. "It is prudent to emphasise quality large-cap companies with strong balance sheets and steady domestic demand exposure, such as financials and consumption sectors, rather than chasing risky small and midcap stocks." Gradual accumulation on market dips can capture value while maintaining discipline, Mistry recommended. Jashan Arora, Director at Master Trust Group, also advised investors to stay selectively invested, focusing on quality large-caps and sectors like banking, capital goods, and auto. "Caution is advised in small caps. A staggered approach to investing may help navigate any near-term volatility." Major drivers for August could include global interest rate signals, crude oil prices, domestic inflation and GDP data, and any geopolitical developments, along with FII stance, added Arora. Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.