China’s demand for intelligent cars to create a US$356 billion components industry by 2030

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Market for car parts and software is likely to grow at an annualised pace of 28.8 per cent between 2026 and 2030

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Robots weld bodyshells of cars at Li Auto’s plant in Changzhou, in eastern Jiangsu province. Photo: Xinhua

Daniel Renin Shanghai

Published: 7:00pm, 20 Dec 2024

China’s automotive industry will need components and software worth 2.6 trillion yuan (US$356.2 billion) a year by 2030 amid mainland buyers’ surging interest in smart cars with autonomous driving systems and digital cockpits even as a brutal price war envelops the industry.

Zhang Yongwei, general secretary of the China EV100, a non-governmental organisation whose members include nearly all top executives of major Chinese electric car manufacturers, said that the market is likely to grow at an annualised pace of 28.8 per cent between 2026 and 2030.

“For car component vendors, designing and churning out hi-tech products to cater to the assemblers and consumers’ needs hold the key to their success,” he said at a forum in Wuhan on Friday. “The best products in high demand will face supply issues.”

Components and services for intelligent vehicles – powered by either combustion engines or batteries – include chips, lidar sensors, LED screens, computer software and electronic devices.

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The 2030 forecast for car parts and software represents an increase of more than 2 trillion yuan from 2024, You Zheng, vice-president of state-owned Dongfeng Motor, said at the forum.