SHANGHAI: China is accelerating its efforts toward an electric future, leaving behind the world’s established auto brands.
When auto executives meet in Shanghai for the auto show starting Tuesday (today), they will return to a sharp market from the one they left in 2021 when the auto industry gathered for the limited event under strict Covid controls.
China-made brands now lead in main segments and their rise has been powered by the latest electric-drive models that were gaining share at home and overseas, according to Reuters.
The front-runner has been the BYD Co Ltd — a publicly listed Chinese conglomerate manufacturing company headquartered in Shenzhen — which will use the Shanghai show to unveil the latest hatchback electric vehicle for value-seeking buyers and a pricier electric vehicle styled as an SUV.
According to an analysis of sales data, BYD’s sales in China were up by almost 69 per cent this year, giving it an 11 per cent share of the overall vehicle market, more than the Volkswagen and the Toyota brand.
Founder of consultancy Automobility, Bill Russo, said in a note issued on Tuesday that “the stratification of that market into clear winners and losers is becoming clear, and there’re very few winners and a whole lot of losers.”
According to data released by the China Passenger Car Association show, China’s passenger vehicle sales were down by 13 per cent in the first quarter.
Electric vehicles
But sales of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids – the area where Chinese automakers led by BYD now dominate – were up 22 per cent. Sales of internal-combustion cars were down by an almost equal margin.
The result has been the double whammy for the likes of Volkswagen, General Motors, Nissan and Honda. Their sales are down, and so is market share.
More than 40 auto vehicle brands have followed Tesla in cutting prices on electric vehicles since January in the price war that has supported sales of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, which are classed as “energy vehicles” in China. It has cut into industry-wide profitability, analysts say.
