Chinese car market: record sales in 2024 and alarming forecasts for 2025
Kyiv • UNN
Chinese automakers achieved record sales in 2024, but expect a challenging 2025. Market growth will slow to 2% due to trade tensions and fierce competition.
Trade tensions are rising in the world's largest automotive market: despite a better-than-expected result in 2024, the start of 2025 portends a drop in sales.
Exports are facing more pressure due to geopolitical issues, and Chinese automakers will feel more pressure. Automakers of well-known old brands will reduce deliveries.
Reported by UNN with reference to Bloomberg.
Details
Chinese automakers are facing a slowdown in exports and uncertain prospects in the domestic market.
Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers experienced a boom in sales at the end of 2024, which is set to be followed by another tough year.
BYD shipped a record 4.27 million electric and plug-in hybrids in 2024.
Li Auto Inc. has delivered more than 500,000 vehicles.
Stellantis NV's partner, Leapmotor, doubled its sales to more than 293,700.
Geely Automotive Group, including the eponymous brand, delivered 2.18 million vehicles, up 32% year-on-year.
Other popular brands, including Nio Inc. and Xpeng Inc. failed to meet their targets despite a pickup in demand at the end of the year.
Experts point to mixed results. But the main thing is that 2025 is currently considered a year of fierce competition.
Among the factors:
The world's largest automotive market has experienced an ongoing price war, as a result of which large manufacturers have gained a larger share and smaller players have been "pushed to the brink," the publication writes.
Rising trade tensions with key trading partners such as the European Union have hit China's electric vehicle exports, and the country's leading industry group has called on the government to expand trade incentives for used cars to boost domestic sales.
A number of uncertainties cloud the beginning of 2025.
According to the country's Passenger Car Association, total retail sales of passenger cars in China may grow by only 2% to 23.4 million vehicles in 2025, compared to 5.7% growth last year.
"We have seen the recovery of more well-known automakers such as Geely and BYD, and this momentum may continue in 2025, as well as significant growth of companies such as Xiaomi. Exports are facing more pressure due to geopolitical concerns and therefore domestic sales are expected to play a more important role," said Cui Dongshu.
Chinese automakers are under greater pressure. Legacy automakers also risk losing further market share. SAIC Motor Corp. a state-owned partner of Volkswagen AG, and Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. a partner of Toyota Motor Corp. are expected to shrink by 20% in 2024.
Recall
Chinese manufacturers are increasing their exports of hybrid cars to Europe due to new tariffs on electric vehicles. Exports of hybrids to the EU tripled, reaching 65,800 units in July-October.
