WASHINGTON — Tesla CEO Elon Musk wants his electric car company to be competitive in China, and he’s asking for President Trump’s help.
After Trump jotted off a tweet about America’s “massive” trade deficit with China, Musk responded with a question: “Do you think the US & China should have equal & fair rules for cars?”
He said all Tesla vehicles shipped to China face a 25% import tax while a “Chinese car coming to the US only pays 2.5%, a tenfold difference.”
“I am against import duties in general, but the current rules make things very difficult. It’s like competing in an Olympic race wearing lead shoes,” Musk wrote.
“We raised this with the prior administration and nothing happened,” he added. “Just want a fair outcome, ideally where tariffs/rules are equally moderate. Nothing more. Hope this does not seem unreasonable,” another tweet said.
The Twitter exchange came one week after Trump announced plans to slap a 25% tariff on steel and a 10% tariff on aluminum, sparking fears of a trade war.
Trump Administration officials said that policy could become official this week. An announcement is expected Thursday afternoon.
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