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There could be a number of repercussions from this decision. The average Chinese citizen’s income is below that of the average American, potentially hurting the Chinese economy more than a price increase would hurt the American economy. This, however, is not the biggest possible impact. China is rapidly becoming the largest market for new cars in the entire world, and the Chinese consumer is becoming more and more important to automakers. If the Chinese market demands more fuel-efficient (and thus environmentally-friendly) cars, the rest of the world might just follow suit.