## China's Electric Vehicle Influence Expands Globally, Except in North America **News Title:** China’s electric vehicle influence expands nearly everywhere – except the US and Canada **Source:** The Conversation **Author:** Jack Barkenbus **Published:** September 3, 2025 This report details the burgeoning global influence of China's electric vehicle (EV) industry, highlighting its rapid growth, competitive advantages, and the significant barriers it faces in the North American market. ### Key Findings and Global Trends: * **Rapid Global EV Adoption:** Globally, electric vehicle sales are projected to reach **1 in 4** new automotive vehicle sales by **2025**. This marks a substantial increase from just five years prior, when EVs accounted for less than **1 in 20** new car sales. * **China's Dominance:** China is a leader in EV adoption and production. * In **2024**, **more than half** of all new vehicle sales in China were electric. * **Two-thirds** of fully electric cars in China are now **cheaper to buy** than their gasoline equivalents. * Operating and maintenance costs for EVs in China are already lower than for gasoline models, making them attractive purchases. * **Chinese EV Market Landscape:** * Most EVs purchased in China are manufactured there by a variety of companies, including household names like **NIO, Xpeng, Xiaomi, Zeekr, Geely, Chery, Great Wall Motor, Leapmotor, and especially BYD**. * Chinese automakers are producing a **full range of EVs**, from subcompacts (e.g., BYD Seagull) to full-size SUVs (e.g., Xpeng G9) and luxury cars (e.g., Zeekr 009). * Recent European crash-test evaluations have awarded **top safety ratings** to Chinese EVs. * Many Chinese EVs are **less expensive** than comparable models from other countries. ### Factors Behind China's EV Success: * **Government Support:** Generous government subsidies have played a role, as EVs were a chosen advanced technology to boost China's global technological profile. * **Technological Advancements and Automation:** * Significant use of **industrial robotics**, leading to "dark factories" that operate with minimal human intervention. * Innovative interior designs with large touchscreens, refrigerators, beds, and karaoke systems. * **Fierce Domestic Competition:** Intense competition among Chinese EV makers drives continuous innovation. * **Rapid Product Development:** BYD, the largest EV seller globally, takes an average of **18 months** from concept to rollout, which is **half the time** taken by U.S. and other global automakers. * **Battery Technology:** BYD is the world's second-largest EV battery seller and has developed a new battery that can **recharge in just five minutes**. ### Exports and Market Access: * **Export Ambitions:** Chinese EV manufacturers are eager to export, as their factories can produce significantly more than the **25 million vehicles** they sell annually within China. * **Growing Export Markets:** Export markets for Chinese EVs are developing in **Western Europe, Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Australia**. * **North American Exclusion:** The **U.S. and Canada** are the largest markets where Chinese vehicles are not being sold. ### Barriers in the U.S. and Canada: * **Tariff Fortress:** Both the U.S. and Canadian governments have imposed **100% tariffs** on imported Chinese EVs, effectively doubling their cost to consumers. * **Consumer Budgets and Pricing:** * The average price of a new EV in the U.S. is approximately **$55,000**. * **Tax credits** are crucial for making EVs more affordable in the U.S. The Trump administration is reportedly eliminating these credits after **September 2025**. * Chinese companies produce several EVs priced **under $25,000** (e.g., Xpeng M03, BYD Dolphin, MG4) that would lose their price advantage due to tariffs if sold in the U.S. * **Domestic Automaker Incentives:** U.S. automakers like Tesla, Ford, and General Motors are developing EVs, but the protection offered by tariffs may reduce their incentive to develop cheaper models, as more expensive vehicles generate higher profits. * **Historical Parallel:** The situation is compared to the U.S. opposition to Japanese vehicles in the 1970s and 1980s, which was eventually overcome by consumer sentiment and Japanese companies establishing U.S. factories. A similar process might occur for Chinese automakers, though the timeline is uncertain. ### Key Statistics and Metrics: * **2025 Global EV Sales Projection:** 1 in 4 new vehicle sales. * **EV Sales 5 Years Ago:** Less than 1 in 20 new car sales. * **2024 U.S. EV Sales:** 1 in 10 new vehicle sales. * **China's 2024 EV Sales Share:** More than half of new vehicle sales. * **Cost of Chinese EVs vs. Gasoline Equivalents in China:** Two-thirds of fully electric cars are cheaper. * **Chinese EV Product Development Time:** 18 months (half of U.S./global automakers). * **Chinese EV Production Capacity:** Potentially twice the annual domestic sales of 25 million vehicles. * **U.S. Tariff on Chinese EVs:** 100%. * **Average New EV Price in the U.S.:** Approximately $55,000. * **Target Price for Affordable EVs in China (without tax credits):** Under $25,000. * **Xpeng M03 Base Model Price:** Approximately US$17,000. ### Notable Risks and Concerns: * **Trade Protectionism:** High tariffs in the U.S. and Canada create significant barriers for Chinese EV imports. * **Affordability Challenges:** The elimination of U.S. tax credits after September 2025 could further hinder EV adoption for budget-conscious consumers. * **Domestic Automaker Incentives:** Protectionist measures might reduce the urgency for U.S. automakers to produce more affordable EV models.
China’s electric vehicle influence expands nearly everywhere – except the US and Canada
Read original at The Conversation →In 2025, 1 in 4 new automotive vehicle sales globally are expected to be an electric vehicle – either fully electric or a plug-in hybrid. That is a significant rise from just five years ago, when EV sales amounted to fewer than 1 in 20 new car sales, according to the International Energy Agency, an intergovernmental organization examining energy use around the world.
In the U.S., however, EV sales have lagged, only reaching 1 in 10 in 2024. By contrast, in China, the world’s largest car market, more than half of all new vehicle sales are electric. The International Energy Agency has reported that two-thirds of fully electric cars in China are now cheaper to buy than their gasoline equivalents.
With operating and maintenance costs already cheaper than gasoline models, EVs are attractive purchases. Most EVs purchased in China are made there as well, by a range of different companies. NIO, Xpeng, Xiaomi, Zeekr, Geely, Chery, Great Wall Motor, Leapmotor and especially BYD are household names in China.
As someone who has followed and published on the topic of EVs for over 15 years, I expect they will soon become as widely known in the rest of the world. What kinds of EVs is China producing? China’s automakers are producing a full range of electric vehicles, from the subcompact, like the BYD Seagull, to full-size SUVs, like the Xpeng G9, and luxury cars, like the Zeekr 009.
Recent European crash-test evaluations have given top safety ratings to Chinese EVs, and many of them cost less than similar models made by other companies in other countries. A Wall Street Journal video explores a Chinese ‘dark factory’ – one so automated that it doesn’t need lights inside. What’s behind Chinese EV success?
There are several factors behind Chinese companies’ success in producing and selling EVs. To be sure, relatively low labor costs are part of the explanation. So are generous government subsidies, as EVs were one of several advanced technologies selected by the Chinese government to propel the nation’s global technological profile.
But Chinese EV makers are also making other advances. They make significant use of industrial robotics, even to the point of building so-called “dark factories” that can operate with minimal human intervention. For passengers, they have reimagined vehicles’ interiors, with large touchscreens for information and entertainment, and even added a refrigerator, bed or karaoke system.
Competition among Chinese EV makers is fierce, which drives additional innovation. BYD is the largest seller of EVs, both domestically and globally. Yet the company says it employs over 100,000 scientists and engineers seeking continual improvement. From initial concept models to actual rollout of factory-made cars, BYD takes 18 months – half as long as U.
S. and other global automakers take for their product development processes, Reuters reported. BYD is also the world’s second-largest EV battery seller and has developed a new battery that can recharge in just five minutes, roughly the same time it takes to fill a gas-powered car’s tank. An Xpeng M03, whose base model costs about US$17,000, is displayed at a car show in Shanghai in April 2025.
VCG/VCG via Getty Images Exports The real test of how well Chinese vehicles appeal to consumers will come from export sales. Chinese EV manufacturers are eager to sell abroad because their factories can produce far more than the 25 million vehicles they can sell within China each year – perhaps twice as much.
China already exports more cars than any other nation, though primarily gas-powered ones at the moment. Export markets for Chinese EVs are developing in Western Europe, Southeast Asia, Latin America, Australia and elsewhere. The largest market where Chinese vehicles, whether gasoline or electric, are not being sold is North America.
Both the U.S. and Canadian governments have created what some have called a “tariff fortress” protecting their domestic automakers, by imposing tariffs of 100% on the import of Chinese EVs – literally doubling their cost to consumers. Customers’ budgets matter too. The average price of a new electric vehicle in the U.
S. is approximately $55,000. Less expensive vehicles make up part of this average, but without tax credits, which the Trump administration is eliminating after September 2025, nothing gets close to $25,000. By contrast, Chinese companies produce several sub-$25,000 EVs, including the Xpeng M03, the BYD Dolphin and the MG4 without tax credits.
If sold in America, however, the 100% tariffs would remove the price advantage. Tesla, Ford and General Motors all claim they are working on inexpensive EVs. More expensive vehicles, however, generate higher profits, and with the protection of the “tariff fortress,” their incentive to develop cheaper EVs is not as high as it might be.
In the 1970s and 1980s, there was considerable U.S. opposition to importing Japanese vehicles. But ultimately, a combination of consumer sentiment and the willingness of Japanese companies to open factories in the U.S. overcame that opposition, and Japanese brands like Toyota, Honda and Nissan are common on North American roads.
The same process may play out for Chinese automakers, though it’s not clear how long that might take.
