Chinese EV sales surge to new high in Europe putting tariffs under scrutiny
Imports this year now account for 14% of the market amid claims vehicles are being dumped in the EU and UK
TL;DR
- Chinese electric car sales in western Europe reached a record 14.2% market share in the first five months of the year.
- This rise puts pressure on European manufacturers and prompts calls for tariffs and quotas.
- The UK is the largest European market for Chinese cars due to a lack of extra levies compared to the EU.
- Italy saw a surge due to specific subsidies for cheap models like the Leapmotor T03.
- Matthias Schmidt suggests the pure electric market share may have peaked, with a focus shifting to plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) to avoid current tariffs.
- Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume noted European PHEVs are uncompetitive against Chinese equivalents.
- Tesla sales rebounded by 60% year-on-year, with the Model Y being the bestselling individual model.
- Chinese manufacturers offer more models in Europe than European brands.