China's automobile brand exports will achieve remarkable results in 2025, with new energy becoming a new engine for growth

In 2025, Chinese automobile brands will continue to make efforts in the global market, with impressive export performance, demonstrating strong market competitiveness and growth potential. According to the latest data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), China's automobile exports exceeded 3.083 million units in the first half of this year, a year-on-year increase of 10.4%, continuing the strong growth trend in recent years. Among them, the export performance of new energy vehicles is particularly outstanding, becoming the core driving force for overall export growth.

In the first half of the year, the export volume of new energy vehicles reached 1.06 million units, with a growth rate of 75.2%, accounting for 34.4% of the total export volume and a significant increase in proportion compared to the same period last year. The achievement of this result is attributed to the comprehensive advantages of China's new energy vehicles in technological innovation, product quality, and cost-effectiveness, gradually gaining widespread recognition in the international market.

From a corporate perspective, several Chinese car companies have performed well in overseas markets. BYD ranks among the top with an export volume of 470000 vehicles, with a year-on-year growth rate of up to 130%. Its new energy products have shown explosive growth in multiple regional markets, with plug-in hybrid models accounting for over 30% of the Southeast Asian market share, and pure electric vehicle orders surging 235% year-on-year in Europe. BYD has not only achieved excellent results in product output, but also actively promoted localization strategy. On July 1st local time, BYD's new energy vehicle factory located in Camasari, Bahia State, Brazil, rolled off the production line for the first vehicle. The factory has a total investment of 7.1 billion yuan and will become the largest electric vehicle manufacturing center in Latin America, effectively promoting BYD's further expansion in the Latin American market.

Chery Automobile's export volume reached 550000 vehicles in the first half of the year, maintaining its leading position. Faced with changes in the global market, Chery is accelerating its transformation towards "smart manufacturing going global". Its localization rate in its Brazilian factory has reached 65%, effectively avoiding a 30% tariff and driving local employment of over 2000 people. In addition, at the end of last year, Chery and Spain's Ebro company established an EBRO factory for CKD assembly, and continued to make efforts in the European market. In the first half of the year, they exported 71848 vehicles to Europe, an increase of 197.7% year-on-year.

In terms of market distribution, China's automobile exports exhibit a "two wheel drive" characteristic. Emerging markets such as Central and South America, as well as the Middle East, have become important supports for export growth, contributing 62% of the increase. Mexico became the largest export destination for Chinese cars in the first quarter with an import volume of 138600 vehicles. At the same time, the European market has achieved counter trend growth through localization strategies. Despite facing challenges such as EU tariffs, Chinese car companies have actively responded through technology licensing and localized manufacturing. For example, Xiaopeng collaborated with Magna to produce in Austria using SKD mode, reducing component tariffs to below 10%; BYD's Hungary factory will also start production by the end of the year, with plans to produce 12 new energy vehicle models to meet EU demand.

With the deepening expansion of Chinese automobile brands in overseas markets, the product structure is also constantly being optimized. The proportion of new energy vehicles in exports continues to rise, and the product types are becoming increasingly diverse, gradually expanding from traditional pure electric passenger vehicles to multiple sub sectors such as plug-in hybrid models and new energy commercial vehicles. For example, SAIC Maxus EV30 has become the largest supplier of DHL's European logistics network with Euro NCAP five-star safety certification. Its aluminum body technology patent has been included in the EU emission reduction standards, reflecting the competitiveness of China's new energy commercial vehicles in the international market.

Looking ahead to the second half of 2025, with the continuous recovery of the global automotive market and the growing demand for new energy vehicles, China's automobile exports are expected to sprint towards the target of 7 million vehicles. Chinese automotive brands are upgrading from simply exporting products to exporting technology, standards, and industrial chains, gradually occupying a more important position in the global automotive industry landscape and becoming an important force driving global automotive industry transformation. ​