Chinese businesses hoping to expand in the US and bring jobs face uncertainty and suspicion

Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — In 2022, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer welcomed a Chinese battery company’s plan to build a $2.36 billion factory and bring a couple thousand jobs to Big Rapids. But now the project is in the crosshairs of some U.S. lawmakers and local residents. They suspect the Chinese company could spy for Beijing and work to extend China’s influence in the U.S. heartland. The company, Gotion High-Tech, rejects the accusations. Lured by the large U.S. market, Chinese businesses are coming to the United States with money, jobs and technology, only to find rising suspicion at a time of an intensifying U.S.-China rivalry that has spread into the business world.