While Chinese electric-vehicle manufacturers are making some headway in Europe, their sales pale in comparison to market leaders like Volkswagen Group, Tesla and Stellantis.
Zhejiang Geely Holding Group is the top Chinese presence with its brands that include Polestar, Volvo and Lotus.
It is also starting to introduce its luxury Zeekr EV models in Europe.
Still, Geely ranked only seventh in pure EV sales in the EU in the first half of 2023, according to Bloomberg data, shipping about 37,000 units — less than a quarter of market leader VW.
The EU announced Wednesday that it was starting an investigation into Beijing’s EV policies, saying state subsidies kept Chinese EVs artificially low and helped flood global markets with cheap cars.
Chinese state media responded by saying Europe was afraid of Chinese competition and growing influence.
European automakers also take advantage of the lower cost of manufacturing in China, forming partnerships with local automakers.
In a bid to make up lost ground in EVs, VW said in July it would invest $700 million in Xpeng.
Kerrigan Advisors’ proprietary annual OEM Survey of over 100 executives reveals that the majority of respondents are worried about the financial impact of Chinese automakers’ growing global market share, and most expect that the EV transition to be slower than expected. The survey also queried executives on their outlooks for dealership valuations and profitability, as well as their expectations for the future of dealer networks and facility requirements.
Tesla has a huge factory on the outskirts of Shanghai that made more than half of the 1.3 million EVs the U.S. company sold globally last year.
