Tesla poised to be early winner as Canada opens door to Chinese-made EVs

Tesla is poised to be one of the first automakers to benefit from Canada's move to remove 100% tariffs on Chinese-made EVs, thanks to its early efforts to ship cars from its Shanghai plant there and its established Canadian sales network, experts say.



Under the deal announced last Friday, Canada will allow up to 49,000 vehicles to be imported annually from China with a tariff of 6.1% on most-favoured nation terms. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the quota could rise to reach 70,000 vehicles within five years.



However, under one clause in the agreement, half of the quota will be reserved for vehicles under 35,000 CAD. Tesla model prices are all above that number.



While many Chinese automakers will be keen to seize the opportunity as they expand exports, Tesla has an advantage as it in 2023 already equipped its Shanghai plant, its biggest and most cost-efficient factory globally, to build and export a Canada-specific version of its Model Y.