CNBC, the American business channel, did a recent report on BYD in Brazil.
While acknowledging BYD’s success, the focus of the piece is on the “but…what at cost?” aspect – a usual narrative trap western media loves to lay when reporting on China.
The CNBC report highlighted the usual “overcapacity” concern, alleged government subsidies, and displacement of local competitors (including American car companies in Brazil).
The report also, not so subtly, hinted that “cheap” Chinese cars must be of equally poor quality – “Brazilian consumers are buying BYDs for its low price, though it may not be as nice as Toyota”.
The CNBC report a slew of comments that had the highest likes:
- “How dare the Chinese to sell good car at an affordable price. That is evil.”
- “Why Chinese EVs are winning in Brazil? Because they are better and cheaper”
- “Resident of Brazil. We own two electric BYDs in our family. We also installed solar panels at home. We reduced costs of operating our cars by 95%. We love both cars, they are competitively priced and of great quality (way superior to locally manufactured ones).”
- “byd not being as nice as the Toyota vehicle is probably the funniest joke I’ve heard this year”
- “But at what cost? Give me a break – their cars are better and cheaper – that’s the cost”
Also the CNBC report points out the negative impact upon Brazil employment. A domestic auto factory closed.
BYD kills jobs–BAD!
AI kills jobs-GOOD!-Shareholder Value!
It seems CNBC is now a propaganda arm of the US economic war upon China.