Chinese expansion in the motor world seems unstoppable. Until now, the car seemed like a product limited to Americans and Europeans, but in recent years, China has hit the key: the electric car. His commitment to this technology is total and he is already beginning to see its results.
Last October, the Paris Salon reopened its doors. An event that until recently was a must for any brand that wanted to be in the conversation. The last year, however, became the perfect thermometer to assess the market. Especially the electric car. Gabriel Jiménez, summed it up well in an article in Auto Bild.
During the first half of 2022, 4.2 million plug-in vehicles were sold worldwide. Of these, 2.4 million cars of this type were purchased in China alone. The interannual growth of this technology was 118%, without a doubt, the market that has grown the most.
When looking for data, it must be borne in mind that in China they put plug-in and electric hybrids in the same bag. For this reason, in Motorpasión they collected that Tesla has been during the first half of 2022 the manufacturer that has produced the most electric vehicles. However, in Bloomberg they give first place to BYD, a Chinese manufacturer that is experiencing an exponential increase in its sales.
One or the other data is taken into account, among five largest manufacturers of electric vehicles and/or plug-in hybrids we also find the Volkswagen Group. Tesla and Volkswagen fight with BYD, SAIC and the Geely Group. This last conglomerate is competing with the Kia/Hyundai group for fifth place.
Growth above expectations
What is palpable is that Chinese manufacturers are beginning to gain ground over Westerners in terms of turnover in the motor market. Within its borders, the European car does not have the aura it once had and firms like Mercedes have been forced to lower their prices to remain competitive.
But they are also experiencing strong growth outside their borders. In 2023, the arrival of numerous Chinese firms to the European market is expected. A landing that does not have Spain among its plans in some cases. BYDHowever, it does have our country on its roadmap.
It seems logical, since the numbers support its growth and its commitment to the electric car. From Bloomberg they point out that the growth of this manufacturer is above the expectations of the experts. The economic daily reports that in 2022 the brand has registered a net income of 17,000 million yuan (2,500 million dollars), 458% more than in 2021. Analysts expected a figure close to 13,200 million yuan (below the 2,000 million dollars).
The main reason they point out from Bloomberg is the huge number of electric cars sold. According to their accounts, they put on the market 1.86 million vehicles of this type. A figure higher than that registered in the sum of the four previous years. And we are not only talking about cheap cars, the economic newspaper points out that its growth will continue to be stable with the entry into the luxury electric car market.
The movement may be key as it is in line with the decisions that the European industry has been making in recent months: sell less but much more expensive. If BYD also manages to enter the premium or luxury electric car market, it will have a wide range of possibilities to continue growing. And they are already taking the first steps.
China’s demonstrated ability to control the supply chain has been essential to understanding the country’s dominance in plug-in vehicles. While European and American firms were racking their brains to ensure raw Materials at a good price (even mining them themselves), in China SAIC and BYD have procured ships to ensure the delivery of the agreed vehicles.
Analyst Matthias Schmidt sees it as difficult for the Chinese electric car to end up dominating the market, although he does leave the door open to this possibility: “you cannot rule them out because people said the same thing about Tesla and they did a good job, but it will be a challenge for them”. But the truth is that European manufacturers are concerned about the progress that the market is taking.
Carlos Tavares has warned on numerous occasions that Europe needs to put new tariffs on the entry of these manufacturers if it wants to protect mainland industry. At the moment, they control the entire supply chain while the European industry doubts the viability of a cheap electric car.
