Global automakers face electric shock in China

The cleaner technologies accounted for 23% of China's passenger car market

If global automakers think they can extend their dominance in China into the electric era, they may be in for a shock, Qazet.az reports.

Kings of the combustion age such as General Motors and Volkswagen are falling behind local players in the booming electric vehicle (EV) market in China, a country that's key to funding and developing their electric and autonomous ambitions.

For Beijing office worker Tianna Cheng, the main dilemma when she was buying a 180,000-yuan ($27,000) Xpeng electric crossover was whether she should go for a BYD car instead, or a Nio; she did not seriously consider overseas marques.

"If I was buying a gasoline car, I may have considered foreign brands," the 29-year-old said as she drove home from work. "But I wanted an EV, and other than Tesla, I saw few foreign brands applying advanced smart technology properly."

Buoyed by demand from consumers like Cheng, electric car sales are rocketing in China's roughly $500 billion auto market, the world's biggest.

In the first four months of 2022, the number of new energy passenger cars - pure EVs and plug-in hybrids - more than doubled from a year earlier to 1.49 million cars, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

The cleaner technologies accounted for 23% of China's passenger car market, where overall vehicle sales fell 12%, reflecting a steep decline in demand for gasoline cars.

There are no foreign brands among the top 10 automakers in the new energy vehicle (NEV) segment this year, with the notable exception of U.S. electric pioneer Tesla in third place, according to China Passenger Car Association data.