Would converting to electric cars likely require the US to increase imports from China?
The U.S. electric vehicle industry is currently dependent on imports from China, the global leader in EV manufacturing. Barring major changes in the U.S. industry, meeting President Biden's 2030 goal of making half of new vehicle sales electric would lead to more Chinese imports.
Substantial government support has facilitated Chinese dominance of the EV supply chain. The U.S., which has not invested as much in EVs, lacks production and processing capacity. With regard to lithium, the U.S. has 4% of global reserves while China has 8%, yet China produces 15 times more lithium than the U.S. China has at least 101 EV battery factories in operation or planning compared to eight in the U.S.
To lessen U.S. dependence on China, Biden is attempting to expand domestic mineral production and increase EV imports from allies such as Canada and Finland.
