"Breaking the Commitment to Canada," Tax-Free Import Quotas of Two American Car Manufacturers Are Cut

【Text by Observers Network, Pan Yuchen; Editor by Gao Xin】 According to reports from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), Reuters and other media outlets, on October 23, the Canadian Ministry of Finance announced a significant reduction in the duty-free import quotas for General Motors and Stellantis, citing their decision to reduce manufacturing operations in Canada and failure to fulfill commitments under Canada's tariff exemption framework.

The Canadian Ministry of Finance stated in a statement that the annual duty-free import quotas for General Motors and Stellantis will be reduced by 24.2% and 50%, respectively. In response to this news, General Motors and Stellantis did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

General Motors' BrightDrop model that was shut down in Ontario, Canada. Visual China

In statements released by Minister of Finance Qian Pengfei and Minister of Industry Melanie Joly, the Canadian government criticized General Motors for reducing production at its Oshawa and Ingersoll plants in Ontario, as well as Stellantis for canceling its production plans at its Bolton plant.

Qian Pengfei emphasized that these "unacceptable decisions" violated the legal obligations of automakers to Canada and Canadian workers, and stressed the Canadian government's determination to protect the automotive industry.

Previously, on October 14, Stellantis announced plans to move the production of its Jeep Compass model from Ontario to the United States; on October 22, General Motors also shut down the BrightDrop model in Ontario, citing weak demand.

This April, Canada announced that it would impose a 25% tariff on all U.S. imports of cars that do not meet the USMCA trade agreement, as a response to the U.S. imposing a 25% tariff on all imported vehicles. Subsequently, the Canadian Ministry of Finance stated that if automakers continue to produce cars locally and complete planned investments, they would be allowed to import a certain number of cars assembled in the U.S. that meet free trade standards.

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