ByKamil Karamali
January 18, 2026
Workers assemble the Zeekr 001 EV models at the Chinese automaker Zeekr assembly plant in Ningbo, east China's Zhejiang Province, April 17, 2025. (Andy Wong)
In almost every deal, there are winners and losers — and the Canada-China deal on electric vehicles appears to be no different.
While Canadian automakers are sounding the alarm — or honking the horn, in this case — that the deal could threaten Canadian auto jobs and the domestic EV supply chain, some Canadian car dealership owners believe it is a win for consumers, who could get good quality electric vehicles for an affordable price.
“I think having more options will bring the price down in the general market,” said Nazar Navolskyy, co-owner of Favorit Motors, a used-vehicle dealership in Toronto.
In almost every deal, there are winners and losers — and the Canada-China deal on electric vehicles appears to be no different.
While Canadian automakers are sounding the alarm — or honking the horn, in this case — that the deal could threaten Canadian auto jobs and the domestic EV supply chain, some Canadian car dealership owners believe it is a win for consumers, who could get good quality electric vehicles for an affordable price.
“I think having more options will bring the price down in the general market,” said Nazar Navolskyy, co-owner of Favorit Motors, a used-vehicle dealership in Toronto.
“I think there’s (going to) be a huge shift, but I think the consumer will win either way -- whether the customer is looking specifically for a Chinese car or willing to explore that option, I think other manufacturers will be forced to react and drop their prices -- and anytime anything is becoming cheaper and better for the consumer, the consumer is winning.”
Navolskyy says he has been exploring car shows around the world and has seen more and more Chinese electric vehicles enter the market, keeping up with technological advancement and challenging their historical reputation for lower quality and safety standards.
“This year, unlike any other year, there was a massive presence of Chinese cars so I already forecasted that they’re coming to North America,” Navolskyy said.
Visitors look at the Chinese made BYD ATTO 3 at the IAA motor show in Munich, Germany, on Sept. 8, 2023. (Matthias Schrader/AP)
“That was my first opportunity to experience that car firsthand, because most people know what we know historically: that Chinese products are cheap, that the quality wasn’t there, that the technology wasn’t there -- now with my real experience, I got to touch and feel, I was absolutely blown away.”
Hamza Patel, manager of Planet Motors, a used-vehicle dealership in Toronto, agrees.
“That was my first opportunity to experience that car firsthand, because most people know what we know historically: that Chinese products are cheap, that the quality wasn’t there, that the technology wasn’t there -- now with my real experience, I got to touch and feel, I was absolutely blown away.”
Hamza Patel, manager of Planet Motors, a used-vehicle dealership in Toronto, agrees.
‘Fix this mess’: Ford slams Carney’s deal with China on EVs
“Consumers will now have the option to choose between established brands and newer entrants such as BYD and Xiaomi, which are offering luxury-styled vehicles with advanced technology at a fraction of the cost of vehicles like a new Tesla Model Y,” he said.
“Brands like BYD, in particular, are already offering competitive range, more features, and newer technology compared to what is currently available in the Canadian market at similar or higher price points.”
Patel added that prospective EV buyers may begin to question the value of purchasing older used EVs when brand-new alternatives from China, with newer technology, longer range and more features, are available at similar or lower prices.
“From a broader perspective, increased affordability will also make it easier for governments to meet EV adoption mandates more quickly, as cost, one of the biggest barriers to EV ownership, will no longer be as significant a concern for consumers,” he said.
Canada previously set a legally binding zero-emission vehicle sales target for manufacturers, but the 20 per cent target for 2026 was delayed in response to slowing sales and industry pressure.
“Consumers will now have the option to choose between established brands and newer entrants such as BYD and Xiaomi, which are offering luxury-styled vehicles with advanced technology at a fraction of the cost of vehicles like a new Tesla Model Y,” he said.
“Brands like BYD, in particular, are already offering competitive range, more features, and newer technology compared to what is currently available in the Canadian market at similar or higher price points.”
Patel added that prospective EV buyers may begin to question the value of purchasing older used EVs when brand-new alternatives from China, with newer technology, longer range and more features, are available at similar or lower prices.
“From a broader perspective, increased affordability will also make it easier for governments to meet EV adoption mandates more quickly, as cost, one of the biggest barriers to EV ownership, will no longer be as significant a concern for consumers,” he said.
Canada previously set a legally binding zero-emission vehicle sales target for manufacturers, but the 20 per cent target for 2026 was delayed in response to slowing sales and industry pressure.
Visitors look at a Geely Galaxy E8 EV car model during the Auto China 2024 in Beijing on April 28, 2024. (Andy Wong/AP)
“Overall, I think it’s a positive,” said Devin Arthur, with EV Society, a Canadian non-profit organization of EV owners and enthusiasts, in a Zoom interview with CTV News.
“So having more choice in the market is obviously more beneficial,” he said. “It leads to better competition. Those prices will come down — and that makes vehicles more affordable for everyone in Canada.”
“Overall, I think it’s a positive,” said Devin Arthur, with EV Society, a Canadian non-profit organization of EV owners and enthusiasts, in a Zoom interview with CTV News.
“So having more choice in the market is obviously more beneficial,” he said. “It leads to better competition. Those prices will come down — and that makes vehicles more affordable for everyone in Canada.”
New details on Chinese EV imports
A senior government source told CTV News on Saturday that a new auto strategy, set to be released next month, will prioritize made-in-Canada vehicles and give companies that build vehicles domestically preferential market access.
The source said that in the first year — when 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles will be allowed to enter Canada at a reduced tariff rate of 6.1 per cent starting March 1 — the imports will likely not include EVs from Chinese manufacturers, as they are not certified by Transport Canada. Instead, the vehicles are expected to be manufactured by North American or Asian automakers with factories in China.
But the source said that will eventually grow, with the expectation that Chinese companies could eventually partner with Canadian automakers to build electric vehicles in Canada, using Canadian workers and for Canadian sales and export.
But some auto manufacturers question whether the deal will benefit Canadians.
The production line at the Zeekr factory in Ningbo. Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg (Qilai Shen/Bloomberg)
“I think it’s highly unlikely to happen,” said Brian Kingston with the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association in a Zoom interview with CTV News.
“(Chinese auto manufacturers) ... achieve a price advantage because they’re building those vehicles in China with low or non-existent labour standards and extremely weak environmental standards. That business model doesn’t work in Canada,” he said.
“If you look at General Motors and Stellantis, they have unionized workforces. They pay about $44 an hour plus pension in benefits. A Chinese manufacturer pays on average about $4 an hour.”
Kingston added that Chinese manufacturers would provide less economic spinoff, as Canadian auto plants employ local workers who support businesses in surrounding communities.
Arthur, however, said Canada cannot depend on the United States to meet its EV manufacturing goals, citing uncertainty around the current U.S. administration.
“We’re already losing those manufacturing jobs,” Arthur said. “So I think it’s probably in our best interest as Canadians as a whole, to diversify, to find other options, to find other potential candidates that would come here and build out that manufacturing sector.”
“I think it’s highly unlikely to happen,” said Brian Kingston with the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association in a Zoom interview with CTV News.
“(Chinese auto manufacturers) ... achieve a price advantage because they’re building those vehicles in China with low or non-existent labour standards and extremely weak environmental standards. That business model doesn’t work in Canada,” he said.
“If you look at General Motors and Stellantis, they have unionized workforces. They pay about $44 an hour plus pension in benefits. A Chinese manufacturer pays on average about $4 an hour.”
Kingston added that Chinese manufacturers would provide less economic spinoff, as Canadian auto plants employ local workers who support businesses in surrounding communities.
Arthur, however, said Canada cannot depend on the United States to meet its EV manufacturing goals, citing uncertainty around the current U.S. administration.
“We’re already losing those manufacturing jobs,” Arthur said. “So I think it’s probably in our best interest as Canadians as a whole, to diversify, to find other options, to find other potential candidates that would come here and build out that manufacturing sector.”
Kamil Karamali
Weekend Correspondent, CTV National News
Canada EV deal with China boosts investment potential but U.S. access question looms
January 20, 2026
A BYD electric car is on display at the Essen Motor Show in Essen, Germany, Thursday Dec. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File) (Martin Meissner)
TORONTO — The trade deal between Canada and China has experts saying it could lead to Chinese electric vehicle firms producing vehicles in Canada, but much depends on the trade talks ahead with the United States.
Critics including Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Unifor leader Lana Payne panned the deal as an attack on workers and Canadian manufacturing, while Prime Minister Mark Carney said the government has already spoken with Chinese companies interested in investing in Canada.
The deal has the federal government lowering tariffs to 6.1 per cent from 100 per cent on 49,000 Chinese EVs a year, with a ramp-up to 70,000 within five years, while China has agreed to reduce tariffs on a range of Canadian goods.
It comes as Chinese manufacturers are already adapting globally to trade restrictions and are moving toward local production where they sell, said automotive consultant Sam Fiorani in an interview.
“Once they get a foothold in Canada, the idea that they could build plants locally, the odds of that jump dramatically.”
Fiorani, vice-president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions, said Chinese firms need to test the waters first, but once they establish a brand, they look to invest where they sell.
“Build locally is the long-term plan for any Chinese automaker.”
China has been ramping up exports, estimated at around 6.5 million units lasts year, as its domestic industry has capacity to produce millions of more vehicles than it can sell locally, but firms have still been investing heavily abroad, said a report out last November from S&P Global Mobility.
“Along with avoiding tariffs and shipping costs, building close to where you sell improves market potential inherently,” said S&P analyst Abby Chun Tu in the report.
“In most cases, consumers are more open to automakers who invest locally, regardless of where a brand’s home market is.”
However the chances Chinses firms will set up shop in Canada with out guaranteed access to the U.S. market is unrealistic, said Andrew King, managing partner of DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc.
“The Canadian market itself is just too small to justify an assembly plant -- which is why the auto industry established an efficient North American assembly system -- a system that the current U.S. administration seems determined to destroy,” he said by email.
It’s not necessarily a question of full Chinese production in Canada or not.
Chinese firms could do a less costly modular production, putting together pre-assembled pieces in Canada, if access to the U.S. becomes unlikely, said Ryan Robinson, automotive research lead at Deloitte Canada, but some form of investment is possible.
“I think there’s a potential for it, for sure,” said Robinson.
There’s certainly demand potential on the consumer side as buyers confront the reality of current vehicle prices, he said, while noting the policy could also help Canada get closer to emission reduction goals.
The investment potential in Canada comes as Chinese firms have increasingly been building capacity outside of their home market. Chinese EV producers have built at least 15 facilities across Southeast and Central Asia since 2022, the S&P report noted, including in countries like Malaysia that has a vehicle market less than half the size of Canada’s.
The wave of investments come as Chinese firms look to expand from an already saturated domestic market, leading to them collectively spend more abroad than at home in 2024 for the first time, according to a report out last year from the Rhodium Group.
Europe has also seen a jump in manufacturing capacity with Chinese giant BYD building plants in Hungary and Turkey, while Chery has entered a joint venture with Spanish automaker Ebro-EV Motors.
Stellantis, meanwhile, has partnered with Leapmotor for the Chinese to firm build its vehicles at Stellantis’ Poland plant, and was set to start producing in Malaysia at Stellantis’s Gurun facility at the end of 2025, the report noted.
Meanwhile, the future of the Stellantis plant in Brampton, Ont., remains an open question after the automaker moved production slated for it to the U.S. last year.
The Canadian government said in announcing the deal with China that it expects within three years it will “drive considerable new Chinese joint-venture investment in Canada,” creating new auto manufacturing career for Canadian workers.
TD chief economist Beata Caranci said in a report last September that Chinese EV production in Canada is unlikely given concerns about market access to the U.S., but that there are still areas for partnership.
“Given the EV technology gaps that remain between China and other nations and China’s desire to expand globally, some form of partnership could aid Canada in improving its EV ecosystem,” she said in the report.
Speaking in Doha, Qatar, on the weekend, Carney said there is interest in Chinese companies producing “affordable” electric vehicles in Canada.
“We’ve had direct conversations directly from the Chinese companies ... with explicit interest and intention to partner with Canadian companies.”
Ford said it was terrible deal for the auto sector and a miscalculated decision by the Prime Minister, while Unifor national president Lana Payne said it was a self-inflicted wound to an already injured Canadian auto industry.
Fiorani said that while investment in Canada is possible, it’s unlikely Chinese firms would partner with the Detroit Three, as they’re all unionized and Chinese producers will be looking to be union-free.
He said the small volume of low-tariff vehicles will mean producers will, however, want to find some way to invest in Canada if they want to grow in the market.
“It should not take very long for some of those brands to become accepted in the Canadian market, and that will lead to local production of those vehicles as the manufacturers want to expand beyond the current limits.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2026.
TORONTO — The trade deal between Canada and China has experts saying it could lead to Chinese electric vehicle firms producing vehicles in Canada, but much depends on the trade talks ahead with the United States.
Critics including Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Unifor leader Lana Payne panned the deal as an attack on workers and Canadian manufacturing, while Prime Minister Mark Carney said the government has already spoken with Chinese companies interested in investing in Canada.
The deal has the federal government lowering tariffs to 6.1 per cent from 100 per cent on 49,000 Chinese EVs a year, with a ramp-up to 70,000 within five years, while China has agreed to reduce tariffs on a range of Canadian goods.
It comes as Chinese manufacturers are already adapting globally to trade restrictions and are moving toward local production where they sell, said automotive consultant Sam Fiorani in an interview.
“Once they get a foothold in Canada, the idea that they could build plants locally, the odds of that jump dramatically.”
Fiorani, vice-president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions, said Chinese firms need to test the waters first, but once they establish a brand, they look to invest where they sell.
“Build locally is the long-term plan for any Chinese automaker.”
China has been ramping up exports, estimated at around 6.5 million units lasts year, as its domestic industry has capacity to produce millions of more vehicles than it can sell locally, but firms have still been investing heavily abroad, said a report out last November from S&P Global Mobility.
“Along with avoiding tariffs and shipping costs, building close to where you sell improves market potential inherently,” said S&P analyst Abby Chun Tu in the report.
“In most cases, consumers are more open to automakers who invest locally, regardless of where a brand’s home market is.”
However the chances Chinses firms will set up shop in Canada with out guaranteed access to the U.S. market is unrealistic, said Andrew King, managing partner of DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc.
“The Canadian market itself is just too small to justify an assembly plant -- which is why the auto industry established an efficient North American assembly system -- a system that the current U.S. administration seems determined to destroy,” he said by email.
It’s not necessarily a question of full Chinese production in Canada or not.
Chinese firms could do a less costly modular production, putting together pre-assembled pieces in Canada, if access to the U.S. becomes unlikely, said Ryan Robinson, automotive research lead at Deloitte Canada, but some form of investment is possible.
“I think there’s a potential for it, for sure,” said Robinson.
There’s certainly demand potential on the consumer side as buyers confront the reality of current vehicle prices, he said, while noting the policy could also help Canada get closer to emission reduction goals.
The investment potential in Canada comes as Chinese firms have increasingly been building capacity outside of their home market. Chinese EV producers have built at least 15 facilities across Southeast and Central Asia since 2022, the S&P report noted, including in countries like Malaysia that has a vehicle market less than half the size of Canada’s.
The wave of investments come as Chinese firms look to expand from an already saturated domestic market, leading to them collectively spend more abroad than at home in 2024 for the first time, according to a report out last year from the Rhodium Group.
Europe has also seen a jump in manufacturing capacity with Chinese giant BYD building plants in Hungary and Turkey, while Chery has entered a joint venture with Spanish automaker Ebro-EV Motors.
Stellantis, meanwhile, has partnered with Leapmotor for the Chinese to firm build its vehicles at Stellantis’ Poland plant, and was set to start producing in Malaysia at Stellantis’s Gurun facility at the end of 2025, the report noted.
Meanwhile, the future of the Stellantis plant in Brampton, Ont., remains an open question after the automaker moved production slated for it to the U.S. last year.
The Canadian government said in announcing the deal with China that it expects within three years it will “drive considerable new Chinese joint-venture investment in Canada,” creating new auto manufacturing career for Canadian workers.
TD chief economist Beata Caranci said in a report last September that Chinese EV production in Canada is unlikely given concerns about market access to the U.S., but that there are still areas for partnership.
“Given the EV technology gaps that remain between China and other nations and China’s desire to expand globally, some form of partnership could aid Canada in improving its EV ecosystem,” she said in the report.
Speaking in Doha, Qatar, on the weekend, Carney said there is interest in Chinese companies producing “affordable” electric vehicles in Canada.
“We’ve had direct conversations directly from the Chinese companies ... with explicit interest and intention to partner with Canadian companies.”
Ford said it was terrible deal for the auto sector and a miscalculated decision by the Prime Minister, while Unifor national president Lana Payne said it was a self-inflicted wound to an already injured Canadian auto industry.
Fiorani said that while investment in Canada is possible, it’s unlikely Chinese firms would partner with the Detroit Three, as they’re all unionized and Chinese producers will be looking to be union-free.
He said the small volume of low-tariff vehicles will mean producers will, however, want to find some way to invest in Canada if they want to grow in the market.
“It should not take very long for some of those brands to become accepted in the Canadian market, and that will lead to local production of those vehicles as the manufacturers want to expand beyond the current limits.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2026.
CARS FOR CANOLA
Updated: January 17, 2026
President Donald Trump greets Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney on Monday, Oct. 13, 2025, in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool)
The Canadian government provided the U.S. administration with notice that it was planning to make a deal with China to reduce tariffs on some Chinese electric vehicles.
Speaking on background, a senior Canadian government official said Canada’s Ambassador to Washington Kristen Hillman was aware of the deal with China and said there were conversations with the Americans.
“We did not take anybody by surprise,” said the official, who CTV News is not naming because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
The timing of the notification remains unclear, but the source said U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was informed about Canada’s decision to introduce a quota.Carney headed to Qatar to discuss investment, despite human rights record
The same official said they believed U.S. President Donald Trump will eventually open the door to Chinese EVs and put in place guardrails that require the vehicles to be made in the United States.
On Friday, Trump called the Canada-China agreement a “good thing.”
“If you can get a deal with China, you should do that,” Trump said. But that optimism wasn’t shared by everyone in the administration.
“I think they’ll look back at this decision and surely regret it – to bring Chinese cars into their market,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy at an event with other U.S. government officials at a Ford factory in Ohio.
Canada’s EV tariffs
In 2024, then-prime minister Justin Trudeau slapped a 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles following a similar move by the U.S. Administration. Both counties cited concerns that cheaper Chinese-made electric vehicles would hurt the North American auto market.
In Beijing on Friday, Prime Minister Mark Carney signed what he called a landmark trade arrangement with China as part of a new five pillar strategic partnership.Canada China news: Auto industry seeks clarity on EV deal
As part of that deal, many punishing Chinese agricultural tariffs were removed in exchange for Canada re-opening the door to Chinese electric vehicles.
The source said the government’s new auto strategy will be released in February. The policy, the source said, will prioritize made-in-Canada gas and electric vehicles, giving companies that build in Canada favourable market access. The strategy will also open the door to more investment from foreign automakers who want to build cars in Canada.
The Canadian government provided the U.S. administration with notice that it was planning to make a deal with China to reduce tariffs on some Chinese electric vehicles.
Speaking on background, a senior Canadian government official said Canada’s Ambassador to Washington Kristen Hillman was aware of the deal with China and said there were conversations with the Americans.
“We did not take anybody by surprise,” said the official, who CTV News is not naming because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
The timing of the notification remains unclear, but the source said U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was informed about Canada’s decision to introduce a quota.Carney headed to Qatar to discuss investment, despite human rights record
The same official said they believed U.S. President Donald Trump will eventually open the door to Chinese EVs and put in place guardrails that require the vehicles to be made in the United States.
On Friday, Trump called the Canada-China agreement a “good thing.”
“If you can get a deal with China, you should do that,” Trump said. But that optimism wasn’t shared by everyone in the administration.
“I think they’ll look back at this decision and surely regret it – to bring Chinese cars into their market,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy at an event with other U.S. government officials at a Ford factory in Ohio.
Canada’s EV tariffs
In 2024, then-prime minister Justin Trudeau slapped a 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles following a similar move by the U.S. Administration. Both counties cited concerns that cheaper Chinese-made electric vehicles would hurt the North American auto market.
In Beijing on Friday, Prime Minister Mark Carney signed what he called a landmark trade arrangement with China as part of a new five pillar strategic partnership.Canada China news: Auto industry seeks clarity on EV deal
As part of that deal, many punishing Chinese agricultural tariffs were removed in exchange for Canada re-opening the door to Chinese electric vehicles.
The source said the government’s new auto strategy will be released in February. The policy, the source said, will prioritize made-in-Canada gas and electric vehicles, giving companies that build in Canada favourable market access. The strategy will also open the door to more investment from foreign automakers who want to build cars in Canada.
Prime Minister Mark Carney meets with President of China Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
No Chinese cars yet
Starting March 1, 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles will be allowed to enter Canada at tariff rate of just 6.1 per cent. Officials say these vehicles are unlikely to be EVs from Chinese companies like BYD, given those cars are not yet certified by Transport Canada. That process, however, will get underway shortly.
Instead, officials say the vehicles imported into Canada in 2026 will likely be EVs made in China by North American or Asian companies. In 2023, before the 100 per cent tariff was put in place, the official said the EVs imported into Canada were largely Teslas made in China or Volvo Polestar cars made in China.
The move was met with mixed feelings as many in the auto industry called for more clarity on the deal that some experts said could damage the auto sector.
Lana Payne, Unifor national president, told CTV News Channel on Friday that she’s extremely disappointed with the deal. “We have been, for a year now, in the fight of our lives as a union to try and protect good auto union jobs in this country, and the auto sector, too,” she said. “And this deal has just made that fight a little harder for us.”
Canada expects Chinese investment
Canada expects the quota for Chinese EVs to grow as Chinese investment and partnership with auto manufacturers and dealers expand in Canada. The source said the expectation is that Chinese companies will partner with automakers in Canada to build electric vehicles, using Canadian workers, for Canadian sale and for export.
While in Beijing, Industry Minister Melanie Joly met with leaders at BYD, Chery and Magna, a Canadian company building auto parts in China.
Annie Bergeron-Oliver
Senior Correspondent, CTV National News
No Chinese cars yet
Starting March 1, 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles will be allowed to enter Canada at tariff rate of just 6.1 per cent. Officials say these vehicles are unlikely to be EVs from Chinese companies like BYD, given those cars are not yet certified by Transport Canada. That process, however, will get underway shortly.
Instead, officials say the vehicles imported into Canada in 2026 will likely be EVs made in China by North American or Asian companies. In 2023, before the 100 per cent tariff was put in place, the official said the EVs imported into Canada were largely Teslas made in China or Volvo Polestar cars made in China.
The move was met with mixed feelings as many in the auto industry called for more clarity on the deal that some experts said could damage the auto sector.
Lana Payne, Unifor national president, told CTV News Channel on Friday that she’s extremely disappointed with the deal. “We have been, for a year now, in the fight of our lives as a union to try and protect good auto union jobs in this country, and the auto sector, too,” she said. “And this deal has just made that fight a little harder for us.”
Canada expects Chinese investment
Canada expects the quota for Chinese EVs to grow as Chinese investment and partnership with auto manufacturers and dealers expand in Canada. The source said the expectation is that Chinese companies will partner with automakers in Canada to build electric vehicles, using Canadian workers, for Canadian sale and for export.
While in Beijing, Industry Minister Melanie Joly met with leaders at BYD, Chery and Magna, a Canadian company building auto parts in China.
Annie Bergeron-Oliver
Senior Correspondent, CTV National News
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