Now Volvo has found a different way around the tariffs for the EX30, through the U.S. duty drawback program, which dates to 1789. The program originally refunded companies the tariffs they paid on imported raw materials if they used them to build finished products for export. Today, it allows a much broader array of exports to offset taxes on similar imports.
For Volvo, it means exports of its larger EX90 electric sport-utility vehicles built in South Carolina can be used to offset imports of the EX30 from China.
If this works out for Volvo, this has to be one of the smartest business moves in the auto industry in recent years by Geely.If I recall, it wasn't clear at all that Geely knew what it was doing when it acquired Volvo; lots of industry doubters that a Chinese company could effectively manage a Western auto manufacturer. But from what I can tell, it has done pretty well with Volvo with a mostly hands off approach and now has a mechanism by which they can import Chinese made vehicles into the US.