Honest John

Chinese Electric Vehicle - Marketshare & Statistics

The Chinese EV Revolution

It wasn’t too long ago that Chinese car brands barely registered outside their home market. Early attempts to go global were met with scepticism, often dismissed as copycats or, at best, cheap alternatives to Western and Japanese automakers. 

Now, as we move through 2026, China is no longer emerging in the electric vehicle space. It is setting the pace.

Led by brands like BYD, NIO, and XPeng, Chinese EVs have surged from relative obscurity to dominate the global stage. China is now the world's largest EV producer and exporter, with homegrown brands outselling legacy giants in key markets and forcing those brands to rethink their strategies.

But how and why has the Chinese EV revolution taken the world by storm? And with Western tariffs threatening to slow their momentum, can Chinese automakers maintain their breakneck growth?

Key Statistics

The EV Market in China

  • EVs accounted for over 53% of all new car sales in China in 2025, up from around 49% in 2024, making it the first major market where electric vehicles outsell combustion cars and with that share expected to keep rising through 2026.

  • China’s EV market reached around 12 million units in 2025, overtaking ICE vehicle sales for the first time.

  • China’s EV market revenue is estimated to have reached US$378 billion in 2025, making it by far the world’s largest EV economy.

  • Plug in Hybrid EVs (PHEVs) led growth in 2024 - up 81% vs 19% for Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs), but in 2025 BEV sales increased around 37% year-on-year compared to roughly 19% for plug-in hybrids.

  • BYD, China’s largest EV manufacturer, delivered nearly 4.3 million vehicles globally in 2024, rising to around 4.6 million in 2025, cementing its position as China’s biggest carmaker and one of the world’s largest EV producers. Meanwhile, foreign brands’ market share in China fell to 37% in 2024, down from 64% in 2020, underlining how rapidly domestic manufacturers have taken control of the home market.

Chinese EVs in the UK

  • Chinese brands accounted for almost 10% of all new UK car registrations in 2025, up sharply from previous years.

  • Chinese manufacturers now make up around 25–30% of UK EV sales, driven by MG, BYD, and new market entrants.

  • MG sold over 68,000 vehicles in the UK in 2024, becoming Britain’s fastest-growing car brand.

  • MG continued to expand in the UK in 2025 as Chinese brands grew their share to nearly 10% of the market, with MG a key contributor to that surge in registrations.

  • The number of Chinese EV models priced under £30,000 in the UK rose from 9 to 29 by early 2025, reshaping the affordable EV market.

  • Industry forecasts suggest Chinese-branded EVs could make up 25% of the UK’s total electric fleet by 2030.

 

Chinese EVs Global Overview

  • Global EV sales reached 17.1 million units in 2024, with China accounting for 11 million – around 65% of the total.

  • China became the world’s largest car exporter in 2024, shipping 4.1 million vehicles, with one in four being a New Energy Vehicle.

  • BYD overtook Tesla in late 2024 to become the world’s largest EV manufacturer and has maintained that position through 2025.

  • Chinese EVs now hold around 10–12% of Europe’s EV market, up from just 0.5% in 2019, and are projected to reach 20% by 2027.

  • In emerging markets, Chinese dominance is even stronger:

    • Brazil: over 80% of EV sales

    • Thailand: over 70% market share

    • Rapid growth across Southeast Asia, Latin America and the Middle East

 

Why Are Chinese EVs Dominating?

BYD (Build Your Dreams)

Car manufacturer BYD is the world’s largest EV maker, delivering nearly 4.3 million vehicles globally in 2024 and increasing that to around 4.6 million in 2025, cementing its position as China’s biggest carmaker and one of the dominant forces in the global electric vehicle industry. Its passenger fleet is now fully electrified, made up entirely of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs).

In 2025, BYD also overtook Tesla in global pure-electric sales, underlining how rapidly it has moved from a domestic champion to a global market leader. The company’s scale, vertical integration, and battery expertise now place it at the centre of the worldwide EV transition.

Outside China, the UK has become one of BYD’s most important overseas markets. The brand sold over 51,000 vehicles in the UK in 2025, and recorded a standout month in September 2025, when registrations surged 880% year-on-year to 11,271 units, driven largely by demand for the plug-in hybrid Seal U SUV.

That performance highlights how quickly BYD is gaining traction in mature Western markets, not just through low-cost EVs but through competitively priced hybrids that appeal to buyers concerned about charging infrastructure.

BYD continues to dominate China’s EV landscape with over 40 models across multiple brands, covering everything from entry-level city cars to premium saloons and SUVs, while steadily expanding its international footprint.

Flagship models include:

  • Han EV (business sedan)

  • Qin Plus EV (urban commuter)

  • Dolphin (compact hatchback)

Together, these figures show how BYD has evolved from a battery manufacturer into a vertically integrated automotive powerhouse, shaping both China’s domestic EV market and the future of global electric mobility.

 

SAIC Motor (MG)

SAIC Motor is China’s largest state-owned carmaker, headquartered in Shanghai. In 2023 it reported revenue of US $105.2 billion, ranking 93rd on the Fortune Global 500. Its global performance continued strongly into 2025, with total vehicle sales reaching about 4.507 million units, a 12.3% increase year-on-year, and self-owned brands (including MG) selling roughly 2.93 million vehicles, up over 21.6% on 2024.

Under SAIC, the MG brand has become its primary export vehicle, especially in Europe. Across the continent in 2025, MG recorded over 300,000 sales, growing around 20% year-on-year, and sold approximately 307,000 vehicles, ranking it among the top 20 brands overall - the highest of any Chinese marque in the market.

In China, SAIC delivered strong numbers through 2025, supported by continued demand for electrified models and its broad portfolio. SAIC’s scale remains a key foundation for MG’s global expansion.

The company has also strengthened its export infrastructure and logistics operations, part of its strategy to build scale in Europe and other overseas markets.

SAIC is also deepening its tech alliances. In 2025, it entered a strategic partnership with Huawei to co-develop “smart EVs”, combining SAIC’s manufacturing scale with Huawei’s software and hardware expertise - a move that positions MG for smarter, more connected vehicles as it expands globally.

Flagship MG / SAIC models include:

  • MG4 EV (electric hatchback)

  • MG3 HEV (hybrid hatchback)

  • MG Cyberster (electric roadster)

Li Auto

Founded in 2015, Li Auto has become one of China’s fastest-growing premium EV manufacturers. In 2024, it delivered just over 500,000 vehicles, an exceptional result for a company less than a decade old and a sign of how quickly it has gained traction in China’s competitive EV market.

Throughout 2025, Li Auto accelerated its transition from a domestic success story to a brand with international ambitions. In September, it launched the Li i6, its first major battery-electric SUV, marking a decisive move beyond its traditional focus on extended-range electric vehicles and deeper entry into the pure EV market.

By September 2025, Li Auto’s cumulative deliveries surpassed 1.43 million vehicles, with 33,951 units sold in that month alone, showing that growth momentum remained strong even as competition intensified.

To support its overseas expansion, Li Auto established a dedicated international division and built dealer partnerships across the Middle East and Central Asia, with the UAE and Saudi Arabia emerging as key early markets. This reflects a broader shift among Chinese EV makers towards regions where premium SUVs are in high demand and charging infrastructure is expanding rapidly.

At the same time, Li Auto has streamlined its product strategy to improve efficiency and scale. In 2025 it simplified the i8 SUV range into a single core variant, reducing manufacturing complexity while sharpening its market positioning.

Li Auto continues to differentiate itself through a focus on spacious, technology-rich family SUVs that combine long electric range with everyday practicality.

Flagship models include:

  • Li L9 (premium / luxury SUV)

  • Li L8 & L7 (mid-range SUVs)

Why Are Chinese EVs Dominating?

Policy Support

Policy is arguably the most impactful aspect when it comes to the domination of Chinese EVs. While many Western governments hesitated over incentives and infrastructure, China treated electric vehicles as a strategic national priority - backing the industry with billions in funding, tax breaks, and regulations designed to accelerate adoption.

Between 2009 and 2023, China poured over $230 billion into subsidies and tax incentives, making EVs more affordable for consumers and giving manufacturers the firepower to scale up production. Buyers benefitted from direct rebates, a 10% sales tax exemption, and long-term incentives to switch from petrol to electric.

That support continues. New tax exemptions introduced in 2023 extend through 2027 -  worth up to RMB 30,000 ($4,170) for purchases in 2024–25, tapering to RMB 15,000 ($2,085) in 2026–27.

EVs are now hugely popular with Chinese drivers: BYD alone accounted for around 10% of all cars sold in China in 2024, not just EVs. Policy support has created a domestic market that buys more EVs than the rest of the world combined, and built the foundation for an export industry now challenging legacy automakers on their own turf.

Beyond subsidies, thanks to this policy support, China now controls much of the EV supply chain itself, from battery manufacturing and raw material processing to vehicle assembly and export logistics, giving its automakers structural advantages Western rivals cannot easily replicate.

Cars are Becoming More Like Consumer Electronics

And that gives China a distinct advantage over its Western counterparts.

Building a world-class internal combustion engine is difficult - one of the reasons German carmakers built their reputation. But electrified vehicles have no engines, no transmissions, and far fewer moving parts. The focus has shifted from mechanical engineering to something China knows better than anyone: batteries.

Batteries are the most critical component in an EV, accounting for 30–40% of manufacturing costs. Success now depends on battery chemistry, power management, and software integration - areas where Chinese firms have a commanding lead. Chinese manufacturers also move faster from research to mass production, often bringing new battery and charging technologies to market years ahead of Western rivals.

China dominates the innovation pipeline. More than 65% of high-impact research publications on electric batteries originate from Chinese institutions, compared to just 2-3% in the UK. Chinese companies also own more than a quarter of global patents in electric propulsion.

BYD illustrates this advantage. Once a mobile phone battery supplier, it used that expertise to become one of the world’s leading automotive battery makers. In 2025, BYD controlled around 15–16% of the global EV battery market, second only to fellow Chinese giant CATL, which holds over 35%.

Meanwhile, traditional Western automakers are still scrambling to catch up, often reliant on Chinese suppliers like BYD and CATL for core battery technology and facing production bottlenecks as they electrify their fleets.

Cars today are as much about software and battery chemistry as they are about driving dynamics. And that shift plays directly to China’s industrial strengths.

Consumer Appeal

Cost and consumer demand are now just as important as policy and technology in driving China’s EV boom.

In the UK and Europe, Chinese automakers have aggressively expanded affordable options. Over the past year, the number of Chinese EVs priced under £30,000 rose from 9 to 29 models, helping narrow the price gap with petrol vehicles from ~35% to ~24% - effectively saving buyers ~£3,600.

That pricing strategy is working. A pan-European EV driver survey in 2025 found that 59% of drivers would consider buying a Chinese EV for their next car, with 24% saying they were very likely and 35% quite likely to do so. Other market research shows that Chinese brands now outperform American manufacturers on buyer consideration across major European markets.

Meanwhile, UK media and industry commentators point to Chinese models as a key force pushing down new EV prices and increasing consumer choice in the sub-£30k segment.

The Role of Tech & AI in the EV Future

China’s automakers are racing to redefine what a car is. Increasingly, Chinese EVs are “smartphones on wheels”, packed with AI-driven features, autonomous driving software, and connected ecosystems. With tens of millions of connected vehicles already on Chinese roads, automakers have access to vast volumes of real-world driving data, accelerating the development of AI systems far faster than most Western competitors.

XPeng has positioned itself as a leader in autonomous driving, investing heavily in AI-powered navigation systems that rival Tesla’s Autopilot. NIO offers advanced driver-assistance features and is trialling autonomous “robo-taxi” services in Chinese cities. Meanwhile, SAIC’s 2025 partnership with Huawei shows how carmakers are joining forces with tech giants to merge cutting-edge hardware with seamless software.

This convergence of EVs and consumer electronics gives Chinese brands a distinct advantage. For younger, tech-savvy buyers, cars are becoming less about horsepower and more about digital experience, connectivity, and integration with everyday devices - areas where China’s consumer tech ecosystem already leads the world.

Cost Advantages: How China Undercuts Global Rivals

Production Efficiency

China’s raw manufacturing efficiency allows its automakers to build cars faster and cheaper than their Western rivals. Even after tariffs, the cost savings are passed on to drivers. Analysts estimate that Chinese EV makers enjoy a built-in cost advantage of around 20% compared to the US and Europe - meaning their cars can undercut Western counterparts by thousands.

The difference is stark. Manufacturing a BYD Seal sedan in Eastern Europe adds roughly $500 per car in labour costs, while shifting production to Germany would quadruple that amount.

Parts sourcing tells a similar story. Western automakers still rely on a patchwork of suppliers, many of them Chinese. By contrast, BYD produces almost everything in-house: batteries, semiconductors, transmissions, axles, and driver assistance systems (ADAS). Even wiring harnesses, braking systems, and body control modules are built internally. Only tyres and windows are fully outsourced.

This vertical integration keeps costs low and supply chains resilient, allowing Chinese manufacturers to ramp up production quickly and respond to market shifts more effectively than their Western competitors. It also shortens development cycles, allowing Chinese brands to move from design to showroom in months rather than years, while many Western models take four to six years to reach production.

BYD’s efficiency shows in its speed to market. In 2025 alone, it is launching multiple new models in Europe, including the Sealion 7 and Atto 2, taking its European line-up to nine models. Tesla, by comparison, has not introduced a new mass-market model since the Model Y in 2020, while its much-trailed Cybercab still lacks a firm release date.

 

Scale & Subsidies

China’s policymakers realised early on that competing directly with established ICE brands was futile. Instead, they made electric vehicles a strategic priority.

Between 2009 and 2023, the government poured around $230 billion into subsidies and incentives, with annual support rising from $7.6 billion (2009–2017) to $45.2 billion in 2023. Battery giant CATL alone received $809 million in 2023, the same year it supplied 36.8% of global EV batteries - a share it has maintained at ~37% in 2025.

Incentives remain central today. A $72.3 billion package (2024–2027) extends tax breaks worth up to RMB 30,000 ($4,170) per vehicle, while a 2025 trade-in scheme offers up to RMB 20,000 for scrapping older cars. NEV purchase tax exemptions are also locked in through 2027.

Some local subsidies have already been cut, and Beijing plans a gradual phase-out by 2027 if NEVs stay above 50% of sales. But the message is clear: China built the world’s largest EV market on state support, and continues to use policy to maintain its lead. That scale has also unlocked cheaper financing, bulk purchasing power, and vast domestic demand, creating an industrial ecosystem Western automakers struggle to replicate.

 

Supply Chain & Sustainability Challenges

For all its dominance, China’s EV industry faces challenges of its own. The country controls the majority of the world’s battery manufacturing capacity, but it still relies heavily on imports of lithium, cobalt, and nickel from regions like Africa and South America. To secure its supply, China has invested billions in overseas mining operations and long-term contracts, particularly in Chile, Indonesia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

This reliance has raised concerns about supply chain vulnerability, as geopolitical pressures and resource nationalism could disrupt access to critical minerals. Western governments, meanwhile, are responding with their own strategies, from the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act to the US Inflation Reduction Act, both designed to localise supply chains and reduce dependency on China.

Sustainability is another pressure point. While Chinese automakers are pushing battery recycling and greener manufacturing processes, the scale of production poses long-term environmental risks. China is also moving quickly to build large-scale battery recycling infrastructure, aiming to turn used EV batteries into a domestic source of lithium, nickel, and cobalt and reduce long-term dependence on imports. How effectively China addresses these challenges will shape whether its lead is secure or fragile.

Innovation

Global demand for EV batteries is expected to rise tenfold by 2030, and the main suppliers are already Chinese.

CATL and BYD dominate the global market. As of 2025, CATL holds 37.9% market share (up from 36.8% in 2023), while BYD has grown to 17.2% (up from 15.9%). Their reach goes far beyond domestic brands: Tesla, BMW, and Toyota all rely on Chinese batteries.

The reasons are simple: price, efficiency, range, and performance. CATL’s new Shenxing Plus battery can deliver up to 600 km (~373 miles) of range with just 10 minutes of charging. This kind of breakthrough is already appearing in mass-market models, putting Western automakers under pressure to catch up. Crucially, these technologies are being commercialised at scale, not confined to concept cars or premium niches, accelerating their global impact.

At the same time, China is pushing into sodium-ion batteries as lithium costs rise. Sodium cells have lower energy density but are far cheaper to produce, and Chinese companies have filed the majority of global patents in this field. Pilot vehicles using sodium-ion packs are already on Chinese roads.

This combination of market dominance and relentless innovation means Chinese carmakers can deliver some of the world’s most technologically advanced EVs, and roll out improvements years before many global rivals.

The Western Response

As Chinese EVs began to undercut Western rivals on price, scale, and speed to market, governments in Europe and the United States responded with sweeping trade barriers designed to protect domestic manufacturers.

In Europe, anti-subsidy tariffs introduced on 30 October 2024 imposed significant additional duties on Chinese automakers:

  • SAIC (MG): 35.3%

  • BYD: 17.0%

  • Geely: 18.8%

  • Tesla (China-made models): 7.8%

These are applied on top of the EU’s standard 10% import duty, making some Chinese EVs up to 45% more expensive for European buyers. In practice, however, the tariffs have not halted Chinese expansion so much as redirected it, accelerating plans to localise production inside Europe rather than rely solely on exports.

In the United States, the response has been even more severe. In 2024, tariffs on Chinese EVs were raised from 25% to 100%, effectively pricing them out of the American market. Additional duties of 25% were extended to battery materials and critical minerals, alongside tighter restrictions on semiconductor exports.

Since taking office in 2025, President Trump has pushed protectionism further. By March, his administration had imposed:

  • a 20% tariff on all Chinese goods,

  • a 25% tariff on goods from Mexico, and

  • a 25% tariff on all vehicle imports, potentially affecting any car sold in the US that is not built domestically.

Together, these measures have locked global EV trade into a far more protectionist era. Rather than slowing China’s advance, they are reshaping how it unfolds, forcing Chinese automakers to accelerate overseas manufacturing, invest in European and regional production hubs, and rethink global supply chains around where vehicles are built, not just where they are sold.

The result is a fragmented EV market, where geopolitics increasingly determines industrial strategy, and where the battle for dominance is being fought as much in factories and trade policy as it is in showrooms.

Industry Backlash

Not everyone is on board with Europe’s protectionist turn. In 2025, BMW, Tesla, and other automakers launched legal challenges against the EU’s anti-subsidy tariffs, arguing they punish consumers, raise EV prices, and risk disrupting already fragile supply chains. Volkswagen has publicly branded the tariffs “the wrong approach,” while Germany’s powerful auto lobby continues to push for a softer stance.

Divisions now run deep across Europe. Germany, heavily reliant on exports to China, has emerged as one of the strongest opponents of the measures. By contrast, countries such as France, Italy, Poland, and Greece back the tariffs, arguing that European manufacturers need protection from low-cost Chinese imports to survive the transition to electric vehicles.

 

Chinese Manufacturers Are Adapting

Rather than pulling back, Chinese automakers are shifting from short-term price tactics to long-term structural strategies in Europe:

  • Local manufacturing over exports
    BYD’s first European factory in Hungary is moving into production, allowing it to bypass tariffs and compete directly with European manufacturers on cost and supply security. Other groups, including Geely and NIO, are accelerating similar localisation plans.

  • Hybrids as a strategic bridge
    Plug-in hybrids and extended-range EVs are becoming a core part of Chinese brands’ European strategies. These models often face fewer regulatory and pricing pressures than pure EVs, playing to the strengths of brands such as MG and Li Auto.

  • From pricing to production strategy
    Early efforts to absorb tariff costs have given way to deeper industrial investment, with Chinese manufacturers embedding themselves directly into European supply chains.

  • A permanent market presence
    What began as an export challenge is now evolving into full-scale industrial competition, with Chinese automakers positioning themselves as long-term players in Europe rather than temporary disruptors.

Global Market Impact

China is no longer just the world’s largest EV market. It has become one of the most powerful forces in global automotive trade, reshaping where cars are built, how they are priced, and which brands dominate future growth.

Chinese manufacturers continued to expand aggressively overseas through 2025, with exports accelerating as competition intensified at home. What began as an EV export story has now become full-scale automotive expansion, with Chinese brands competing across mass-market, premium, and hybrid segments worldwide.

Chinese automakers are now on course to challenge Japan’s long-held position as the world’s largest vehicle exporter, underlining how quickly China has moved from follower to industry leader.

United Kingdom

The UK has become one of the most important Western markets for Chinese brands.

  • Chinese manufacturers accounted for almost 10% of all new car registrations in the UK in 2025, nearly double their share in 2024.

  • Electric vehicles made up around 23% of all new UK car sales in 2025, with Chinese brands playing a major role in making EVs more affordable.

  • MG, BYD and other Chinese marques are now firmly established as mainstream players rather than niche imports.

The UK has effectively become a testing ground for how Chinese brands perform in open, highly competitive Western markets.

Europe

Europe remains the most strategically important export and expansion region outside Asia.

  • By late 2025, Chinese manufacturers controlled around 12–13% of Europe’s EV market, despite the introduction of anti-subsidy tariffs.

  • Market share is expected to continue rising through the second half of the decade as brands expand dealer networks, introduce local manufacturing, and diversify into hybrids.

Europe is shifting from being a destination for Chinese exports to becoming a base for Chinese automotive production and long-term competition.

United States

The US remains the most politically closed market for Chinese EVs.

High tariffs and restrictive tax rules have effectively blocked Chinese brands from competing directly, even as American EV demand continues to grow. Despite this, the global rivalry between BYD and Tesla has become the defining contest in the EV industry, with BYD maintaining its lead in total vehicle deliveries.

The US is now less a market Chinese brands can enter, and more a benchmark they compete against globally.

Emerging Markets

Where trade barriers are weaker, Chinese brands are already dominant.

  • In Brazil, Chinese manufacturers control the vast majority of EV sales, making it China’s single largest export destination.

  • In Thailand, Chinese EV market share has remained above 70%, reshaping the country’s entire car market.

  • Across Southeast Asia, Latin America and parts of Africa, Chinese EVs and hybrids are rapidly replacing Western and Japanese brands.

These regions show what happens when price, technology and scale meet minimal protectionism.

 

The Big Picture

Across developed and emerging markets alike, Chinese brands are no longer niche disruptors. They are becoming the defining force of the global EV transition.

China is no longer just exporting vehicles.
It is exporting an entire automotive system:
batteries, manufacturing scale, software, logistics, pricing power, and industrial strategy.

That is why China’s EV rise is not a temporary surge, but a structural shift that is reshaping the global car industry for the rest of the decade and beyond.

2025 & Beyond Outlook

The transition to electric vehicles is accelerating. In 2025, global EV sales are expected to rise by 20%, reaching 20.4 million units, up from 17 million in 2024. 

In the UK, predictions suggest EVs will account for 23% of all new car sales, up from 19.6% this year.

China will remain the world’s largest EV market, not only in production but also in demand, with plug-in hybrid (PHEVs) and extended-range EVs (EREVs) gaining traction alongside fully electric models. In fact, China is poised to become the first major market where EVs outsell ICE vehicles.

Technology Breakthroughs

Solid-state batteries are expected to hit mass production in the near future, offering:

  • Up to 450 Wh/kg energy density

  • Over 600 miles of range on a single charge

  • Longer lifespan and improved safety

Ultra-fast charging is also evolving, with 800V architectures enabling:

  • 100 miles of range in just 5 minutes

  • Charging times dramatically reduced, making EVs even more convenient

Infrastructure Development

More EVs on the road means more charging stations are needed.

  • The UK has approved £500 million for charging infrastructure projects, aiming to expand its network for future demand.

  • Globally, there are currently 4 million public charging stations, but by 2035, an estimated 219 million will be required.

  • China accounts for 72% of the world’s public charging infrastructure.

As governments worldwide invest in EV infrastructure, charging access will become a key driver of market growth, with China once again setting the pace.

More Affordable EVs

As battery and manufacturing costs stabilise, cheaper EV models will enter the mass-market. Chinese automakers will continue optimising production efficiency, with an increased focus on sustainability, such as:

  • Using recycled materials in battery production

  • Reducing emissions in the manufacturing process

  • Exploring new lightweight materials to improve efficiency

One of the biggest barriers to EV adoption currently is price; a greater number of cheaper EVs will make price-conscious consumers more likely to switch from ICE vehicles.

Will Tariffs Slow China’s Growth?

The global trade landscape remains highly uncertain, and tariffs continue to shape where and how Chinese EVs can compete.

In the United States, the Trump administration’s 2025 tariffs, including a 25% levy on all vehicle imports and 20% on Chinese goods,  have effectively shut Chinese EVs out of the market for now.

In Europe, protectionist duties remain in force, but stricter CO₂ reduction targets are squeezing traditional automakers, forcing them to accelerate their EV shift — indirectly boosting demand for Chinese brands that can supply affordable models quickly.

Meanwhile, Chinese manufacturers are pivoting aggressively to emerging markets. With EV adoption still in its early stages, regions like Latin America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East represent major growth opportunities. In Brazil and Thailand, Chinese EVs already dominate with market shares of 80%+ and 70%+ respectively,  a template for expansion elsewhere.

 

Risks & Headwinds

Despite their rapid rise, Chinese EV makers are not invincible. The industry is grappling with overcapacity at home, with dozens of competing brands and the likelihood of consolidation in the next few years.

Fierce price wars are already underway: in 2024 and 2025, BYD and Tesla repeatedly slashed prices to defend market share, squeezing margins for smaller automakers. Global rivals like Hyundai, Volkswagen, and Stellantis are also accelerating their own EV transitions, investing heavily in new battery platforms and European gigafactories.

Political risks loom large too. Tariffs in the US and EU, along with growing scrutiny over data security and cybersecurity, threaten to limit access to lucrative markets. Meanwhile, consumer trust in Chinese brands outside Asia remains uneven, particularly in North America.

The combination of tariffs, competition, and potential overcapacity means that China’s EV revolution, while dominant today, will face significant tests in the years ahead.

The Road Ahead: A Chinese-Led EV Future?

With unstoppable momentum, cutting-edge technology, and a dominant position in global EV production, China is currently the driving force behind the global EV revolution. The response from Western carmakers will determine if that remains the case in 2025 and beyond.

Sources

European Commission, Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS), Fleet News, Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF), Transport and Energy, Al Jazeera, CNEV Post, Tech Wire Asia, Statista, MIT Technology Review, SMMT, Auto Trader, the Telegraph, Campaign Asia, BYD, China Daily, SCMP, China Briefing, Car Expert, Nikkei Asia, Reuters, Financial Times, Bloomberg, International Energy Agency (IEA), Escalent, PwC, EV Volumes, Counterpoint Research, International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), Fitch Ratings, CATL, XPeng, NIO, Volkswagen, BMW, Tesla.