But the trend of China’s impact on the global auto market has been best characterized by this chart, published over the weekend, showing how Chinese car production has gone from 1% to 39% of global production in 20 years.

The rapid ascent was fueled by significant government investment, advancements in automation, and the growth of its domestic market, which is now the largest globally.

The NYT piece said that as domestic sales have slowed due to economic headwinds, China has increasingly turned to international markets to sell its cars, especially EVs.

Chinese brands like BYD have gained global recognition for offering advanced electric cars at highly competitive prices, exporting more EVs than any other country. Major markets include Europe, where compact models are popular, and Southeast Asia, where affordability drives demand.

We wrote back in November that China was even dethroning many of its long-rivaled Japanese competitors. Between 2019 and 2024, Japanese automakers experienced the steepest market share declines in China, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia, according to Bloomberg’s analysis of sales and registration data.

Japanese automakers aren’t just losing ground across Asian countries, with all six tracked by Bloomberg experiencing declines in China – but also globally as shown in the above chart.

Even Toyota, the global leader in car volume, has seen its sales stagnate. In Southeast Asia, a traditional stronghold for Japanese brands, market share has dropped sharply.

In Thailand and Singapore, Japanese carmakers now control just 35% of the market, down from over 50% in 2019, while streets once dominated by Nissan and Mazda are increasingly filled with Chinese brands.

China’s leadership in EVs is the result of over a decade of focused government support, including subsidies, tax breaks, low-interest loans, and heavy investment in battery technology.

Since 2009, over $230 billion has been funneled into the EV and battery sectors, the New York Times reported.

Chinese automakers also maintain a significant cost advantage over their global competitors. Cars made by Chinese companies cost roughly 30% less to assemble, largely due to control over the battery supply chain, lower labor costs, and more efficient production processes.

However, China’s dominance has raised concerns globally. Countries like the U.S. and the European Union have imposed tariffs on Chinese EVs, citing unfair subsidies and the potential threat to local industries. Despite these trade barriers, Chinese vehicles remain competitive because of their lower prices and comparable quality.

China’s heavy investment and technological edge position it to continue dominating the global auto market. Even with intensifying international pushback, its production capacity, cost advantages, and leadership in EV technology suggest that its influence will persist for years to come.

Recall just days ago we wrote that GM was taking a more than $5 billion charge and closing plants to address its declining business in China.

“Falling U.S. interest rates and ongoing solid demand from central banks are supporting the gold price,” USB Analyst Giovanni Staunovo said. “(It) Was definitely good to see again purchases by the Chinese central bank last month, but other central banks have been also buying large quantities.”

USB is not alone in their bullish shift on precious metals. Their Chinese counterparts echoed the sentiment to justify recent purchases.

“The decision to increase gold holdings, particularly following Trump’s recent election victory, reflects the PBOC’s proactive approach to safeguarding economic stability amid evolving global conditions,” OCBC analysts said in a note.

All of this was expected by Jonathan Rose, CEO of Genesis Gold Group, who had prepared his company before the election for the results that he was hoping would happen.

“While other gold companies were cheering for Democrats to win so they could continue to sell on fear, we positioned our clients to be ready for a Trump victory,” he said. “It’s paying off now and will pay off even more once he’s in office; expect major gains in gold and silver very soon.”

Genesis Gold Group is a faith-driven precious metals firm that specializes in rolling over or transferring retirement accounts into Genesis Gold IRAs backed by physical precious metals.

“With interest rate cuts coming and a return to sound fiscal principles, we expect the economy to perform much like it did during President Trump’s first term when gold prices rose 51%,” he continued.

The ongoing “bubble” caused by geopolitical turmoil and a stock market that has been propped up by inflation have prompted many Americans to consider safeguarding their retirement with physical gold and silver. To learn more about how Genesis Gold Group can help, request their free, definitive Wealth Protection Kit.

These plants only started buying Iranian crude this year after receiving guidance from the US State Department that sanctions wouldn’t be enforced by the Biden administration, according to a note from the industry consultant, which didn’t name the refiners. If confirmed that would be the latest foreign policy scandal by the captured and corrupt Biden admin, which has made a mockery of sanctions enforcement, especially if the alternative is sharply higher oil and gas prices.

In any case, with the imminent arrival of Trump, the Chinese refining sector will be under significant pressure to consolidate and the government might be “willing to sacrifice the teapots to score some easy points against Trump by clamping down Iranian imports.”

Limiting access would raise the cost of feedstock and slash margins for teapots and help Beijing to trim capacity.

Activity by independent refiners has picked up in the spot market, with a number of plants securing barrels from the Middle East in recent trades, on top of WAF grades purchased two weeks ago. These were all unsold, discounted barrels from the previous cycles.

With Iranian oil set to become extremely scarce, China’s independent refiners have snapped up barrels from across the Middle East and Africa as offers of Iranian oil remain scarcer and more expensive than usual, in part due to broadening US sanctions.

In a separate Bloomberg report, we learn that a large Chinese processor bought about 10 million barrels of grades from Abu Dhabi and Qatar, according to traders who asked not to be identified. The cargoes are for loading in December and January, and helped to clear an overhang of unsold crude from previous trading cycles, they added.

China’s independent refiners, known as teapots, typically favor cheaper Iranian crude and take around 90% of the OPEC producer’s exports, but a slowdown in the amount of oil available to purchase has forced a change in buying habits. The incoming Trump administration has also led to some large processors backing away from Tehran’s crude due to their exposure to US banking, according to Energy Aspects.

Traders and shippers put the scarcity of Iranian supply down to the broadening of US sanctions in October to include more dark fleet tankers plying the Iran-China trade. That move has crimped the number of vessels available for ship-to-ship transfers, tightening supply and driving prices higher (see “Satellite Analysis Shows Enormity Of Secretive Oil Shipping Hub Funneling Iranian Crude To China“).

Flows of Iranian oil to China have dipped more than 10% this month compared with October, according to Kpler. Meanwhile, the volume of West African crude is at the highest on a monthly basis in at least two years, partly driven by the spike in Iranian oil prices, Sentosa Shipbrokers wrote in a report.

Beijing’s move to issue more import quotas to teapots has also spurred buying activity, traders said. Refiners were asked to submit requests to purchase more crude a few months ago and were provided verbal approvals this week, but some started buying ahead of the confirmation, they added.

Refiners in Shandong province collectively sought an allocation of about 3.8 million tons, or 28.5 million barrels, which will be valid until the end of the year, according to traders.

The initial build-up of Middle Eastern oil was spurred by bumper trading activity in contracts linked to the Dubai market in recent months. That led to the delivery of cargoes that ultimately went unconsumed and had to find buyers at a later date, traders said.

President-elect Donald Trump has already rattled the market with the threat of tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico, and investors are closely watching to see how his administration will approach Iran. Sanctions on the OPEC producer are expected to tighten, according to Energy Aspects.

Key concerns include the possibility dark fleet tankers will be sanctioned en-route to their destination, a move that would spook the ports waiting to receive the vessels and lead to cargoes being stranded at sea.

We previously discussed how ship-to-ship transfers off Malaysia are also set to face more scrutiny, a process used to mask the origin of Iranian cargoes by re-labeling them as Malaysian oil.

China is the world’s largest car market and domestic brands are dominating with a surge of electric vehicles. Chinese companies are also expanding into Southeast Asia, challenging the long-standing dominance of brands like Toyota, Honda, and Mitsubishi, according to w new report by Bloomberg.

Between 2019 and 2024, Japanese automakers experienced the steepest market share declines in China, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia, according to Bloomberg’s analysis of sales and registration data.

Japanese automakers are losing ground across Asia, with all six tracked by Bloomberg experiencing declines in China. Even Toyota, the global leader in car volume, has seen its sales stagnate. In Southeast Asia, a traditional stronghold for Japanese brands, market share has dropped sharply.

In Thailand and Singapore, Japanese carmakers now control just 35% of the market, down from over 50% in 2019, while streets once dominated by Nissan and Mazda are increasingly filled with Chinese brands.

The Bloomberg profile notes that Toyota remains competitive in some segments, like pickups, but the broader outlook is troubling for automakers once renowned for efficiency and reliability. Their slow pivot to fully electric vehicles puts them at risk of falling behind in a market driven by advanced battery technology and smart software.

Although Chinese automakers face high tariffs in Europe and the U.S., the erosion of Japanese dominance in Asia could signal wider challenges ahead.

Toyota’s stronghold in Southeast Asia is supported by regional production of gasoline cars with larger engines, appealing to local preferences. In 2023, Thailand and Indonesia accounted for nearly 10% of Toyota’s 11 million global vehicle output. However, other Japanese brands, like Nissan, are struggling.

Nissan’s outdated lineup and lack of hybrids contributed to profit losses and production cuts, with its presence in Jakarta now fading.

Meanwhile, Chinese automaker BYD has rapidly gained traction in Indonesia, ranking as the sixth top-selling brand just months after delivering its first vehicles. Its $40,000 Seal EV is proving especially popular.

Japan’s global auto production share has dropped from over 20% two decades ago to 11%, while China has surged to dominate, now accounting for nearly 40% of worldwide car manufacturing. Chinese automakers are leveraging their expertise in low-cost batteries and flexible supply chains to expand into Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, further challenging Japan’s dominance in these markets.

The news report from Joe Kovacs at WND is below, but I wanted to state up front that this is the way. There will be fiscal conservatives who denounce the plan because of tariffs. I’m not a fan of tariffs as a general practice, either, but we cannot bear the full burden of stopping our border invasion. Doing so would be foolish and the easiest way to “encourage” cooperation with other countries is to give them incentives. In this case, the motivator will be steep tariffs and by golly it’s going to work. Here’s the news…

‘Ridiculous’: Trump Reveals Monumental Action He’ll Take on Day One in Office

President-elect Donald Trump announced Monday evening one of the first major actions he will take on his first day in office: “Charge Mexico and Canada a 25% Tariff on ALL products coming into the United States” due to their “ridiculous Open Borders.”

“As everyone is aware, thousands of people are pouring through Mexico and Canada, bringing Crime and Drugs at levels never seen before,” Trump said on Truth Social.

“Right now a Caravan coming from Mexico, composed of thousands of people, seems to be unstoppable in its quest to come through our currently Open Border. On January 20th, as one of my many first Executive Orders, I will sign all necessary documents to charge Mexico and Canada a 25% Tariff on ALL products coming into the United States, and its ridiculous Open Borders.

“This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!

“Both Mexico and Canada have the absolute right and power to easily solve this long simmering problem. We hereby demand that they use this power, and until such time that they do, it is time for them to pay a very big price!”

Trump did not limit his attention to Mexico and Canada, but turned his concern to China.

“I have had many talks with China about the massive amounts of drugs, in particular Fentanyl, being sent into the United States – But to no avail,” he explained.

“Representatives of China told me that they would institute their maximum penalty, that of death, for any drug dealers caught doing this but, unfortunately, they never followed through, and drugs are pouring into our Country, mostly through Mexico, at levels never seen before.

“Until such time as they stop, we will be charging China an additional 10% Tariff, above any additional Tariffs, on all of their many products coming into the United States of America.

“Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

Follow Joe on Twitter @JoeKovacsNews

Content created by the WND News Center is available for re-publication without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@wndnewscenter.org.

Among the multiple stories over the last few weeks about Chinese intelligence and hackers either attempting to, or outright gaining access, to U.S. cell phone networks (with reports stating President Trump and his team were targeted), comes news of a hack of T-Mobile’s network.

T-Mobile’s network was reportedly breached in a Chinese cyber-espionage campaign targeting multiple U.S. and international telecom companies, according to the NY Post, citing the Wall Street Journal.

Hackers tied to a Chinese intelligence agency accessed the network to spy on high-value intelligence targets, though the timing of the attack was not disclosed.

The NY Post, citing WSJ, wrote that the extent of data taken from T-Mobile customers remains unclear.

The FBI and CISA recently revealed that China-linked hackers intercepted surveillance data meant for U.S. law enforcement after breaching several telecom firms.

Earlier reports indicated that Chinese hackers accessed networks of broadband providers, including Verizon, AT&T, and Lumen, extracting data from systems used for court-approved wiretapping.

“T-Mobile is closely monitoring this industry-wide attack,” a spokesperson for the company said. “At this time, T-Mobile systems and data have not been impacted in any significant way, and we have no evidence of impacts to customer information.”

Sure.

At this moment, most Americans have no idea that a war between the United States and China is coming.

Just a few days ago, Chinese President Xi Jinping boldly talked about “preparation for war” as he was dressed in military fatigues…

On Thursday Chinese Communist Dictator Xi Jinping commanded troops to strengthen their preparedness for war while visiting his People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force following last week’s drills of surrounding the sovereign country of Taiwan.

“Xi said the military should ‘comprehensively strengthen training and preparation for war, (and) ensure troops have solid combat capabilities,’ CCTV reported,” according to the AFP and reported on Barrons Saturday.

Why would China need to prepare for war? Needless to say, nobody is planning to attack China.

The truth is that the only reason that China would need to prepare for war is if it was planning to invade Taiwan.

Because the moment that China invades Taiwan, the U.S. and China will be at war.

In recent days, the Chinese have been getting very aggressive with Taiwan…

On Monday, Beijing had deployed fighter jets, drones, warships and coast guard vessels to encircle Taiwan — its fourth round of large-scale war games around the democratic island in just over two years.

China’s communist leaders have insisted they will not rule out using force to bring Taiwan under Beijing’s control.

Meanwhile, western leaders continue to publicly discuss sending NATO troops to Ukraine. The latest example of this came from the foreign minister of Lithuania…

The Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said in a statement to Politico on Monday that European Union countries should return to the idea of putting boots-on-the-ground in Ukraine to fight Russia.

The idea comes after French President Emmanuel Macron said in February that sending Western troops to Ukraine is not ‘ruled out’ for the future plans in war against Russia, according to the AP. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz shut down that plan for the time being however.

“If information about Russia’s killing squads being equipped with North Korean ammunition and military personnel is confirmed, we have to get back to ‘boots on the ground’ and other ideas proposed by [French President] Emmanuel Macron,” he said in written comments, Politico reported on Monday.

One of the reasons why this has came up again is because there are reports that soldiers from North Korea are being equipped and sent to fight for Russia on the front lines of eastern Ukraine…

North Korean soldiers have been filmed receiving uniforms and equipment at a training ground in Russia’s far east, appearing to confirm reports from South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) that 1,500 soldiers have been shipped over for military training to be deployed in Ukraine.

The North Korean troops are thought to be receiving training before being sent to the front line in Ukraine, in what is thought to be a clear sign of the ever-warming relations between Moscow and Pyongyang.

Both sides just continue to escalate matters.

It appears to be just a matter of time before we find ourselves in a direct conflict with the Russians, and that is a really, really bad idea.

North Korea has been making all sorts of noise lately.  In addition to sending troops to fight in Ukraine, the North Koreans are also threatening to invade South Korea…

North Korea has said it had found the remnants of a South Korean military drone and that any further “violation” of its territory would result in a “declaration of war.”

Tensions between the two sides of the peninsula have escalated since May when the North began flying balloons carrying garbage across the border to the South, prompting Seoul to respond by restarting loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts.

This week, North Korea accused South Korea of flying drones over Pyongyang on three occasions this month and threatened to respond with force if it happened again.

The North Korean military is vastly superior to the South Korean military. If North Korea invades, the only way that South Korea will survive is if we intervene.

But right now the U.S. military is focused on the Middle East, because that conflict could spiral completely out of control at any moment.

On Sunday night, IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari warned that Israel would soon begin targeting any financial institutions that aid Hezbollah…

“In the past 24 hours, dozens of projectiles have been fired at northern Israel,” he began. “In the next minutes, we will issue an advance evacuation warning to residents of Beirut and other areas in Lebanon to evacuate locations being used to finance Hezbollah’s terror activities. I emphasize here: Anyone located near sites used to fund Hezbollah’s terror activities must move away from these locations immediately.”

“We will strike several targets in the coming hours and additional targets throughout the night.

“In the coming days, we will reveal how Iran funds Hezbollah’s terror activities by using civilian institutions, associations, and NGOs that act as fronts for terrorism.”

And it certainly did not take long for that to start happening.

Last night, branches of Al-Qard Al-Hassan Association Bank were hit by Israeli airstrikes…

Israeli fighter jets struck dozens of targets in Beirut and other areas of southern Lebanon overnight, including branches of a bank accused of holding funds used by Hezbollah.

The military’s Arabic spokesman, Avichay Adraee, had earlier in the night issued several evacuation orders for buildings throughout southern Lebanon he said were in the vicinity of facilities belonging to the U.S.-sanctioned Al-Qard Al-Hassan Association Bank.

Most people in the western world have absolutely no idea how chaotic things have become over there.

It is being reported that there is “widespread panic” in Beirut at this moment…

Jeanine Hennis, the United Nations’ special coordinator for Lebanon, said that after the IDF issued its evacuations, said there was “widespread panic” in Beirut.

“A brief window to escape to safety. Intense blasts reverberate across the night sky. With each day, Lebanon suffers more. But even amid the escalating violence, solutions remain available. If only opportunities would be seized,” she said.

Could the U.S. soon find itself involved in 4 major global wars?

Let’s hope not, because we are not even prepared to fight one…

The US Army’s outgoing top commander in the Pacific region has warned that the US can “ill afford” another war because its military is vastly overstretched.

According to Defense One, Gen. Charles Flynn said that the US’ authoritarian rivals — Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea — had been placing increasing pressure on American military resources.

Speaking at the AUSA conference in Washington DC last week, Flynn described the technology and military alliances between the authoritarian states as a “very dangerous combination.”

The U.S. military is not the overwhelming global force that it once was.

While other major powers have been feverishly preparing to fight World War III, our military has been rapidly becoming a politically correct joke.

Now a day of reckoning is upon us, and we are not ready.

Michael’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

Suppliers suspected of having ties to China’s military-industrial complex pose a key risk due to the potential for built-in wireless components in EVs to be “weaponized,” which could even be used to gridlock British streets, according to the report by the China Strategic Risks Institute (CSRI) and the Coalition on Secure Technology.

The so-called Cellular IoT Modules (CIMs) are wireless components embedded in all-electric vehicles and act as a gateway for data to flow in either direction. (Related: Can China remotely control and detonate electric vehicles?)

The report said it was concerned that data generated by Chinese-manufactured EVs operated in the U.K. could end up in the hands of the Chinese state and could be used for surveillance purposes.

This adds to concerns that the British government’s open-door policy to EVs from China threatens to undercut domestic manufacturing. The U.K.’s domestic car industry is responsible for 198,000 manufacturing jobs, representing 2.5 percent of the country’s entire GDP.

CSRI warned that China’s heavy involvement and subsidization of its EV manufacturing sector, allowing the country to produce an excess of five to 10 million EVs per year, along with the British government’s failure to impose restrictions on Chinese EV imports raises the possibility of China posing a threat to British national security and to the country’s car manufacturing industry.

The study comes amid a rapid influx of Chinese automakers into the U.K. market, with the CSRI claiming that Chinese-made EVs have increased their U.K. market share from just two percent in 2019 to 33.4 percent in the first half of 2023.

British government rapidly procuring EVs for the public sector

The U.K. government is rapidly procuring EVs for the public sector. It confirmed last year that some EV units used by the Ministry of Defense had been supplied by MG, a motoring brand owned by Chinese state-owned automobile manufacturing giant SAIC Motor.

Chinese EV giant BYD has also made significant inroads in the British public sector, with at least 1,800 electric buses delivered to local authorities across the country in the past few years.

CSRI warned that London’s refusal to impose restrictions on Chinese EVs, unlike its neighbors in the European Union, could result in Britain becoming a “dumping ground and a potential backdoor into the European market” for Beijing.

The report further warned that Chinese-made CIMs used in EVs could be used to send data back the Beijing about British users. The paper noted that the totalitarian government mandates that all firms within the country provide data access to the state, which was one of the motivating factors for the U.K.’s previous decision to phase out components manufactured by Chinese tech giant Huawei from its 5G networks by 2027.

The CSRI suggested that the U.K. mandate foreign suppliers of EVs to agree to not transmit data overseas under any circumstances, introduce a legal requirement to share their source code with the British government, and allow for regular inspections of data storage centers globally to ensure that sensitive data is not being sent covertly to other servers.

Watch this video warning that new cars, including EVs, could be remote-controlled by governments.

This video is from PureTrauma357 on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

• Chinese EV hatchback threatening to disrupt U.S. auto sales with very low price and claims of efficiency.
• China continues to rely on coal while pushing expensive renewable energy and EVs on America.
• Low-cost, China-made Volvo EV to be sold in the U.S., threatening Tesla and other EV makers.
• Experts: Biden’s push for China-made EVs poses NATIONAL SECURITY risk.
• STUPID: In order to meet demand for “clean” electric vehicles, China will be forced to burn more COAL.