A Chinese Glass Factory Opened in Ohio. Its Rivals Can’t Compete.

Summary

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WSJ What’s News — "A Chinese Glass Factory Opened in Ohio. Its Rivals Can’t Compete."

Date: February 9, 2026
Host: Alex Osola (The Wall Street Journal)
Featured Guest: Gavin Bade (WSJ Trade and Industrial Policy Reporter)

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into the impact of Chinese investment in U.S. manufacturing, centering on the case of the Fuyao glass factory in Ohio and its competitive impact on a nearby American rival, Vitro. Through on-the-ground reporting and analysis, the discussion explores the promises and perils of foreign direct investment—especially when the investor is from China—and how it affects local industries, jobs, and the broader U.S. economy.

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Key Discussion Points

1. The Fuyao vs. Vitro Dynamic in Ohio

[07:51 - 10:17]

• Old Guard vs. Newcomer:

  • Vitro, based in Crestline, Ohio, is an “old style factory,” unionized, with roots tracing back to the 1950s. The plant’s future is unstable, as parent company Vitro (Mexico-based) has shuttered three similar U.S. plants since 2019 due to competition from Fuyao (Chinese-owned).
  • Fuyao, in Moraine, Ohio, operates in a sprawling former GM facility employing over 3,000 workers—a workforce more than ten times Vitro’s. The plant is equipped with “state of the art glass manufacturing and cutting equipment,” and relies on efficiencies and economies of scale.

• Quote [08:52]:

  “They [Fuyao] would say, look, we’re just better at making glass than these other older plants and that’s why we’re competitive. Now, that's maybe not the whole story…”
  — Gavin Bade

2. Allegations and Controversies

[09:18 - 10:17]

• Federal Probes:

  • Fuyao faces a federal investigation into alleged human trafficking and illegal immigration, following a DHS and FBI raid in July 2024. Authorities allege Fuyao and affiliates created “an intricate web” to supply illegal labor to the plant.
  • Allegations also include possible receipt of Chinese state subsidies or below-market financing, which would give Fuyao an artificial competitive advantage.

• Company Response:

  • Fuyao denies all allegations, maintains that workforce hiring is legal, and claims any infractions involve suppliers, not Fuyao itself. The Chinese Embassy defends investments as “creating jobs in Ohio.”

• Quote [10:19]:

  “Fuyao says that, you know, none of these allegations of unfair labor practices or trade practices are legitimate. They say that all of their employees were legal to work in the US…”
  — Gavin Bade

3. Economic and Political Implications

[10:48 - 11:45]

• Broader Trends:

  • Chinese direct investment in the U.S. dropped sharply post-2018, but successful footholds—like Fuyao’s—pose systemic questions.
  • Some Chinese firms are now targeting other U.S. sectors, including copper processing and broader automotive investments.

• Contrasts in Policy:

  • Despite his “America First” rhetoric, President Trump recently endorsed Chinese manufacturing investment, promising job growth.
  • Critics argue this threatens to “hollow out American manufacturing from within,” citing the inherent challenges in competing with non-market economies.

• Quote [11:44]:

  “What China hawks in Washington would say is if you let companies that come from a non-market economy like China, that is going to hollow out American manufacturing from within.”
  — Gavin Bade

4. Political Debate Over Foreign Investment

[00:45, 11:00, 11:44]

• Washington’s View:
  • The episode notes tensions in D.C.: some see foreign investment as a boon for U.S. jobs, while “China hawks” warn of strategic risks and unfair competition.
  • President Trump’s encouragement of Chinese plant investment in his Detroit Economic Club remarks is specifically referenced.

5. Notable Quotes and Moments

• Describing Vitro’s Plant [07:51]:

  "It’s been around a long time. You could see where all of the raw glass and huge slabs comes in and they get put on these conveyor belts to be cut into the shapes for all of your car windows."
  — Gavin Bade

• On Plant Closures [08:19]:

  “[Vitro’s owner] have closed down three other similar factories since 2019, largely because of competition from this Chinese company that instead of shipping all the glass across the water, they've just set up here.”
  — Gavin Bade

• Future Outlook [11:00]:

  “We could [see more Chinese-owned factories]. Foreign direct investment from China into the US really fell off a cliff since 2018, but we are seeing some places where they did get a toehold.”
  — Gavin Bade

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Important Timestamps

• [07:51] — Inside the Vitro plant and its old-school operations
• [08:52] — How Fuyao applies competitive pressure and factory comparison
• [09:18] — Labor and trade controversy; federal investigations
• [10:19] — Fuyao and Chinese Embassy response to allegations
• [10:48] — How typical is the Fuyao-Vitro dynamic? Future of Chinese FDI
• [11:44] — Washington’s skepticism: national manufacturing risks

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Episode Tone and Style

• Conversational yet incisive, with an on-the-ground reporting flavor from Gavin Bade. Factual and analytical, offering both local color (“old-style factory,” “stood the test of time”) and macro-level economic perspective.
• Balanced, with both business voices and political critiques presented fairly.

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Conclusion

The episode provides a nuanced look at the complications arising when Chinese firms set up shop in the U.S.—highlighting not just the jobs and capital they bring, but also labor, trade, and strategic risks faced by older local competitors. The narrative leaves listeners with questions about how America should approach foreign direct investment, especially from economic rivals—and who really benefits when global capital comes to town.

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Transcript

[A]

Well, the holidays have come and gone once again. But if you've forgotten to get that special someone in your life a gift, well, Mint Mobile is extending their holiday offer of half off unlimited wireless. So here's the idea. You get it now, you call it an early present for next year. What do you have to lose? Give it a [e-mail] Switch limited time, 50% off regular price for new customers. Upfront payment required $45 for three months, $90 for six month or $180 for 12 month plan taxes and fees. Extra speeds may slow after 50 gigabytes per month when network is busy see terms. The White House is having trouble convincing Congress to ban Wall street from buying homes. Plus, President Trump wants other countries to invest in manufacturing in the US what happens when that country is China?

[B]

What China hawks in Washington would say is if you let companies that come from a non market economy like China, that is going to hollow out American manufacturing from within.

[A]

And Ghislaine Maxwell takes the 5th today after questions from Congress. Alex? It's Monday, February 9th. I'm Alex Osila for the Wall Street Journal. This is the PM edition of what's news, the top headlines and business stories that move the world today. The US has captured another oil tanker after a month spent chasing it. U.S. forces tracked the ship from near Venezuela all the way to the Indian Ocean and is the eighth sanctioned oil tanker US Forces have grabbed. Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's longtime associate, today refused to answer questions from Congress. The House Oversight Committee is investigating how the government handled the Epstein case. Maxwell joined this morning's closed door deposition virtually from prison.

[B]

As expected, Elaine Maxwell took the Fifth and refused to answer any questions. This obviously is very disappointing. We had many questions to ask about the crimes she and Epstein committed as well as questions about potential co conspirators. We sincerely want to get to the truth of the American people and justice for the survivors. That's what this investigation is about.

[A]

That's Republican Representative James Comer of Kentucky, the chair of the Oversight Committee. Maxwell is serving a 20 year prison sentence for helping recruit and groom underage girls. Her lawyer said Maxwell was prepared to speak if President Trump gave her clemency. Also on Capitol Hill, one of President Trump's signature housing proposals, a ban on Wall street investors buying single family homes, isn't going over so well. People familiar with the matter say the White House has pressured congressional Republicans in recent weeks to include the investor ban as an amendment in one of the two major housing bills currently working their way through the House and the Senate. The House is set to vote on its bill as soon as tonight and it's expected to pass with bipartisan support. The Senate passed a similar bill last fall. Rich Rebecca Pichotto, who covers residential real estate for the Journal, says lawmakers have been resistant.

[C]

Congressional Republicans who are on the House Financial Services Committee and the Senate Banking Committee committee committees that would need to approve any kind of amendment, they're still waiting on the White House to come up with definitions for institutional investor and single family home before they decide whether they're going to pursue legislation. The other thing is that there just deep ideological opposition. You know, a lot of these traditional Republicans have like free market values and don't believe that the should dictate what a business can or can't buy. The Wall street investor ban that Trump is proposing has been long championed by some Democrats like Senator Elizabeth Warren. And so the idea of jumping into agreement with that side is not necessarily something that all of these congressional Republicans are getting on board for.

[A]

Rebecca says Congress has its own ideas about how to improve the housing market.

[C]

If you look at both of the housing packages, the housing for the 21st century act and the Road to Housing act, both are really focused on spurring more housing, expanding housing financ finance options and modernizing certain government housing programs. They both want to make it easier to build manufactured housing and streamline regulations like environmental reviews that historically have held up housing development and making it easier to build homes. This has not necessarily been the approach or at least the philosophy behind the proposals that Trump has put forward. He's dealing with this conundrum of wanting to boost affordability for a first time homebuyer, but also realizing that that might require bringing down home value existing homeowners. So his dilemma has pushed him to focus on kind of demand side policies, but Congress is sort of squarely focused on supply side solutions.

[A]

Coming up, what happens when a Chinese company sets up a factory in the U.S. and where are markets today after the Dow hit 50,000 on Friday? That's after the break. This episode is brought to you by indeed. Stop waiting around for the perfect candidate. Instead use Indeed sponsored Jobs to find the right people with the right skills fast. It's a simple way to make sure your listing is the first candidate. C. According to INDEED data, Sponsored jobs have four times more applicants than non sponsored jobs. So go build your dream team today with Indeed. Get a $75 sponsored job credit@ Indeed.com podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Stocks climbed higher today after a roller coaster ride last week that ended with The Dow topping 50,000 today was quieter. The Dow added 20 points, while the Nasdaq rose 0.9% and the S&P 500 added half a percent. Some reports to look out for this week that could influence trading are the delayed January jobs report on Wednesday and inflation data on Friday. Speaking of jobs, whether you're hiring, firing, looking for a promotion or a new job, we'd love to hear your impressions of the labor market and track down questions for you. Email us a voice memo to wnpodsj.com, or leave us a message at 212-416-4328. Make sure to include your full name and location so we can use your comments on the show. Novo Nordisk is escalating its fight against telehealth company Himss and Hers. This morning we told you about how Hims and Hers dropped its plan to offer a knockoff Wegovy weight loss pill. Today, Novo filed a lawsuit accusing Hims and Hers of violating the patents covering its Ozempic and Wegovy drugs. Novo is trying to recapture momentum in the $70 billion weight loss drug market and trying to protect its business from companies that sell compounded versions of its drugs, Hims and Hers said. The lawsuit assaults a well established part of US pharmacy practices. The company's shares fell 16% today, while Novos rose more than 5% in Europe and grocery giant Kroger said former Walmart executive Greg Foreign is its new CEO. Kroger had been searching for a permanent leader for almost a year. It's the biggest grocer in the US by sales after Walmart and has been focusing on keeping food costs down for customers by doing more promotions and expanding its cheaper private label products. Kroger shares closed up 3.9%. President Trump has been trying to get foreign companies to invest in US Manufacturing plants, promising to replace jobs lost to the global economy. But what happens if local industries can't compete? Two auto glass factories in Ohio are showing what could happen when America's biggest rival, China, sets up shop next door. Gavin Bade covers trade and industrial policy for the Journal and visited Ohio to find out more. Gavin, your story focuses on the Fuyao plant in Moraine, Ohio, and the impact it's had on a competitor, Vitro, which has a plant about two and a half hours drive away. You went inside the Vitro plant. What is it like there? What's the vibe?

[B]

The vibe is very much kind of an old style factory. This Vitro plant dates back to the 1950s. It's been around a long time. You could see where all of the raw glass and huge slabs comes in and they get put on these conveyor belts to be cut into the shapes for all of your car windows. We've got string that keeps them separated, scratch. And it's almost like a cartridge for like a gun or something like that.

[A]

Yeah. We'll put the rack in.

[C]

And then.

[B]

Our robot begins to grab those. So this is a plant that has really stood the test of time for decades. It's got a union workforce there in that, in this small town called Crestline. And it's really facing an uncertain future here. Vitro, the Mexican company that owns it, they have closed down three other similar factories since 2019, largely because of competition from this Chinese company that instead of shipping all the glass across the water, they've just set up here.

[A]

How is Fuyao applying competitive pressure?

[B]

The Fu Yao people would say, well, it's just efficiencies and economies of scale. Their factory houses more than 10 times the workers that the Vitro plant does. They get 3,000 people down there in Moraine. They took over a big closed General Motors factory and just installed all of the state of the art glass manufacturing and cutting equipment. Right. And so they would say, look, we're just better at making glass than these other older plants and that's why we're competitive. Now that's maybe not the whole story from the standpoint of the government and from their competitors like Vitro. Right. There are also accusations of unfair trade and labor practices. So there's this big federal investigation into alleged human trafficking and illegal immigration to feed workers into this plant. The Foo Yao plant was actually raided in July 2024 by DHS, by the FBI and other agencies. This is under the Biden administration. And they alleged that the owners of this factory and others created an intricate web of affiliates that were all aimed at creating a pipeline for illegal immigration and illegal labor to come to this plant. And then on top of that, you have concerns that, well, maybe this plant is perhaps getting subsidies from the Chinese government, perhaps they're getting cheap financing from Chinese state banks, perh. They're playing a little bit of a different economic game from the companies that have been established in the US for a long time.

[A]

And what does the company say about this?

[B]

Fuyao says that, you know, none of these allegations of unfair labor practices or trade practices are legitimate. They say that all of their employees were legal to work in the US it was all from their suppliers. And they say they're not the target of the investigation. The Chinese Embassy says Chinese companies make investments and employ a lot of people in the US So it's also worth mentioning that Fuyao, of course, employs a lot of people in Ohio. And if you listen to business leaders there, they really welcome their presence.

[A]

Right. How generalizable is this really? I mean, is this a typical kind of dynamic where you have a local manufacturing setup and then a Chinese rival comes in? Like, can we see more of this coming?

[B]

We could. Foreign direct investment from China into the US really fell off a cliff since 2018, but we are seeing some places where they did get a toehold. We also see some interest from Chinese companies in investing in some other sector, whether that's copper mining and processing or looking at getting into the automotive sector more broadly. And we've also seen President Trump at least verbally welcome that. Right. He said just last month when he was speaking to the Detroit Economic Club, he said let China in, let them invest in factories, let them create jobs here. Well, that is a double edged sword, so to speak. What China hawks in Washington would say is if you let companies that come from a non market economy like China, that is going to hollow out American manufacturing from within.

[A]

That was WSJ reporter Gavin Baid. Gavin, thank you so much.

[B]

Always a pleasure, Alex. Thank you.

[A]

And finally, it's the Monday after the super bowl. So if your office is anything like ours, everyone is talking about the ads. Besides the toilet humor and heavy dose of nostalgia, like did we really need not one but two ads featuring the Backstreet Boys? Anyway, AI companies stole the show. OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft, Google and Amazon all showcased their latest products. But based on how viewers reacted online and in polls, those ads didn't do as well as spots from Budweiser and Duncan. And that's what's news for this Monday afternoon. Today's show is produced by Pierre Bienname with supervising producer Tali Arbel. I'm Alex Osola for the Wall Street Journal. We'll be back with a new show tomorrow morning. Thanks for listening. Foreign hey, this is Telus Demos and I'm Miriam Gottfried. We're reporters at the Wall Street Journal and The hosts of WSJ's take on the Week. It's a weekly show that gives listeners a leg up in the world of markets and investing. From the Fed's moves to market bubbles. We dive into the biggest deals, key players and business news ahead. If you're looking for more news and tools that you can use to help navigate the markets, consider becoming a subscriber to the Wall street journal, visit subscribe.WSJ.com/take on the week to subscribe now.