Ford And Geely Want To Work Together On Manufacturing And Tech

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Happy Wednesday! It's February 4, 2026, and this is The Morning Shift — your regular roundup of nan apical automotive headlines from astir nan world, successful 1 place. This is wherever you'll find nan astir important stories that are shaping nan measurement Americans thrust and get around.

In this morning's edition, we're looking astatine nan anticipation of a woody betwixt Ford and Geely, arsenic good arsenic American dealers' guidance to Chinese cars. We'll besides look astatine really galore group conscionable can't spend caller cars immoderate more, and Canada's plans to inquire Stellantis and GM for cash. 

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Chinese automakers person taken nan world by large wind successful caller years, pinch nan federation now accounting for astir 10% of caller car sales successful Europe. This of people intends that companies for illustration Geely want much of a manufacturing foothold connected nan continent, and it seems Ford is each excessively happy to thief retired successful speech for tech. From Reuters: 

Ford and China's Geely are successful discussions astir a imaginable partnership, 8 group pinch knowledge of nan ongoing talks said, arsenic nan world's carmakers look to stock heavier exertion and manufacturing costs.

The companies are successful talks to person Geely usage Ford mill abstraction successful Europe to nutrient vehicles for nan region, 3 group acquainted pinch nan matter said. They besides person discussed nan imaginable model for shared conveyance technologies, including for automated driving, according to 2 different group pinch knowledge of nan talks.

The talks centered connected European manufacturing are much advanced, 2 group said. Ford sent a delegation to China this week to intensify discussions, which followed meetings past week successful Michigan betwixt elder Geely executives and Ford leaders, immoderate of nan group said.

Reuters says these talks person been underway for months, truthful don't beryllium amazed if they lead location — and if there's immoderate Chinese tech successful your adjacent Ford. Of course, that's assuming our existent America First management would let specified a woody to spell forward. 

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Dealerships are benignant of a font of evil successful nan United States akin to our very ain denizens of Mordor, and they're committed to ensuring thing comes betwixt them and extracting profit from group who conscionable request to get around. The latest example: Dealers are rallying together successful hopes of banning Chinese automakers from nan United States. From Automotive News: 

The caput of nan National Automobile Dealers Association said nan waste and acquisition group supports blocking Chinese automakers from entering nan U.S.

"I will show you that arsenic an organization, 95 percent of our board, I activity for a committee of 65 dealers, 95 percent of them work together that nan NADA should proceed to support nan administration's policies to support nan Chinese OEMs retired of this country," CEO Mike Stanton said Feb. 3 astatine nan Haig Partners Maximizing Value Conference.

"It's bad for our industry, it's bad for our country, it's bad for consumers."

Bringing successful inexpensive Chinese cars would springiness consumers much options, and springiness automakers a logic to compete successful nan little extremity of nan market. It would besides supply title to existing dealers, which is apt why those existing dealers are upset. Someone other is muscling successful connected their turf, and they don't want their protection racket interfered with. 

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In nan absence of that title astatine nan little extremity of nan market, nan mean value of caller cars keeps climbing. The result? People who would different bargain entry-level caller cars are being pushed into nan utilized market. From Automotive News: 

In today's affordability environment, galore customers who were entry-level new-vehicle buyers are now used-vehicle buyers. To get those buyers into nan shop and closing deals successful 2026, each dealership departments will person to beryllium imaginative and efficient.

The conveyance affordability situation has been brewing for years. Automakers' lineups and prices, higher liking rates, less incentives and broader economical challenges each mixed to reshape nan new-vehicle market.

High-income consumers dress up a increasing stock of new-vehicle buyers, arsenic lower-income consumers are being forced retired of nan market. In Cox Automotive's 2025 Car Buyer Journey Study, respondents who make $150,000 aliases much a twelvemonth made up 42 percent of caller buyers, up from 29 percent successful 2020.

This, of course, has a cyclical effect. As caller cars get much expensive, caller car buyers get wealthier. As caller car buyers get wealthier, they request nicer features and opt for higher trim levels, which thrust up prices further. 

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Governments emotion to incentivize companies to move into their territory, and they often do truthful by footing nan measure for accumulation facilities. Take Canada's government, which paid to refit Stellantis factories to nutrient caller cars — cars that Stellantis quickly moved accumulation of backmost to nan United States. Canada is, expectedly, not happy. From nan Wall Street Journal:

Canada estimates that officials will purpose to retrieve "hundreds of millions of dollars" from Stellantis and General Motors aft nan companies scaled backmost accumulation successful nan country, Industry Minister Melanie Joly said Tuesday.

Joly told reporters she would supply much specifications successful nan coming days. Seeking compensation of that standard is apt to escalate hostility betwixt Ottawa and North American automakers, whose stock of automobile accumulation successful Canada has declined steadily successful nan past decade.

Canadian officials and representatives from Stellantis person been successful talks since astatine slightest November aft nan automaker said it would displacement accumulation of nan Jeep Compass from a mill successful Brampton, Ontario, to Illinois. Earlier this decade, Canada provided nan balanced of conscionable complete 1 cardinal Canadian dollars, aliases astir US$731 million, to nan automaker to reconfigure nan Brampton works and support accumulation successful Canada.

We emotion antagonizing our closest friends pinch waste and acquisition wars! This is bully governance. 

It's absorbing to perceive that EA didn't person precocious expectations for "The Sims," given that by my mathematics it's eaten astir a cardinal hours of quality productivity.