By Gary S. Vasilash

Here’s something that at the very least ought to raise some eyebrows in Detroit and Washington DC.

This, from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association’s report on economic activity released last week:

“In the first three quarters of 2023, China maintained its position as the primary source of new EU car imports in value terms, growing by an impressive 58.1% and claiming a significant 17.2% market share in value terms.”

While one might imagine that it would be Japan, but that countries auto manufacturers are in third place, at 14.4% of the market, behind South Korea, at 14.6%.

The U.S.? In fifth place, at 10.6%, behind the United Kingdom, which has 14.1% of the EU market.

It’s not so much that the U.S. is so far behind the others (realize that the delta behind the U.K. is 25%), but that China is gaining so much ground in the EU so quickly.

How does this portend for the future of U.S. OEMs, especially if the Chinese start bringing in lower-cost cars that many Americans can afford despite the current 27.5% tariff that the Chinese would have to absorb?