The U.S. Commerce Department proposes a new rule that could force GM, Ford, and other automakers to halt Chinese imported vehicles

General Motors and Ford Motor would need to stop importing vehicles to the U.S. from China under a proposed rule cracking down on Chinese software and hardware, a U.S. Commerce Department official told Reuters Monday.

GM and Ford are aware, the official said, that "going forward" production in China for the U.S. market "would need to be shut down in China and moved elsewhere."