China’s EV makers, unfazed by US, European export curbs, will push overseas vehicle shipments to new heights, analysts say

Name: ‘Overtaking on a bend’: how China’s EV industry charged ahead to dominate the global market
Uploaded: 2024-05-06T00:00:16.000Z
Duration: 12 min 53 s
Description: ‘Overtaking on a bend’: how China’s EV industry charged ahead to dominate the global market

Curbs on exports of Chinese-made cars in the US and EU will not deter assemblers from BYD to Chery from pursuing their global ambitions, analysts say

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China is expected to ship 6 million vehicles abroad in 2024, 22 per cent higher than last year’s 4.91 million units. Photo: AFP

Daniel Renin Shanghai

Published: 8:00am, 6 May 2024Updated: 8:27am, 6 May 2024

China’s overseas vehicle shipments are set to grow at a clip this year, bolstered by surging sales in markets like Southeast Asia and the Middle East, as the country’s heft in developing and manufacturing electric cars goes from strength to strength.

Curbs on exports of Chinese-made cars in the US and European Union will not deter major assemblers from BYD to Chery Automobile from pursuing their global ambitions as they look to localise their production facilities outside mainland China, industry officials and analysts say.

China is expected to ship 6 million vehicles abroad in 2024, including buses and lorries, 22 per cent higher than last year’s 4.91 million units, according to Sun Xiaohong, general secretary of the car unit under the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products.

That would be enough for the country to defend its title as the world’s largest exporter of vehicles, after it beat Japan to clinch the top spot for the first time in history last year.

In 2023, Japan recorded overseas shipments of 4.42 million cars, up 16 per cent on the year.

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‘Overtaking on a bend’: how China’s EV industry charged ahead to dominate the global market

“Now the challenge of overcapacity in China is coinciding with the development of Chinese car companies so that they have the credible products to compete in foreign markets, even mature ones,” said Stephen Dyer, Greater China co-leader and head of the Asia automotive practice at global consultancy AlixPartners.