2025 was the year China NEV exports took the global car market by storm.
China’s New Energy Vehicle (NEV) market has cemented its position as a global automotive powerhouse, driven by a dramatic surge in exports during the first three quarters of 2025. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) reported an 89.4% year-on-year increase in NEV exports, pushing the total volume to an impressive 1.758 million units. This growth is a key strategic move for Chinese automakers, providing lucrative overseas returns to offset intense price wars and narrowing profit margins in the highly competitive domestic market.
BYD Sets the Global Localization Model
Standing out in this export boom is the manufacturer BYD, which is quickly becoming the benchmark for global expansion.
- Export Dominance: BYD’s NEV exports surged by 130% to a total of 705,000 units in Q1-Q3 2025, accounting for nearly 40% of China’s total NEV exports.
- Overall Ranking: Including both NEVs and gasoline vehicles, BYD’s overall export ranking jumped four spots from sixth to second place year-on-year.
- Global Footprint: The company has successfully expanded its presence to 116 countries and regions, pioneering a global strategy that prioritizes localized production across the entire industrial chain, moving beyond a traditional commodity trade model.
A prime example of this strategy is BYD’s significant production base in Brazil, which recently rolled out its 14-millionth NEV. The factory is a major source of employment, expected to hire over 1,800 people by the end of October, and once fully operational, will create more than 20,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The Race for Global Manufacturing
The push for global production localization is accelerating across the industry as Chinese automakers strategically navigate growing international trade barriers.
- Great Wall Motors launched manufacturing operations at a repurposed Mercedes-Benz plant in Brazil in August 2025.
- Changan Automobile inaugurated its new facility in Rayong, Thailand, in May 2025.
These moves, alongside BYD’s efforts, demonstrate a concerted effort to strengthen their international footprint and mitigate geopolitical risks.
We see this push for local assembly coming to Malaysia as well with brands such as GAC partnering up with Tan Chong, GWM partnering up with EPMB, and other other companies setting up their own KD operations.
Domestic Strength and Regulatory Shifts
The export surge is underpinned by a robust domestic market, where NEV sales reached 9.47 million units in the first three quarters of 2025—a 28.1% year-on-year increase that represents 48.8% of China’s total automotive market. State-owned enterprises remain highly influential, with Changan Automobile leading the NEV domestic sales chart among the top five, selling 724,249 units.
However, rapid growth is now met with stricter oversight. In late September, China’s Ministry of Commerce and other departments announced a new licensing system for exporting pure electric passenger vehicles, to be implemented starting January 2026.
The new regulation, which already applies to gasoline, PHEV, and EREV vehicles, prohibits exports without a license and mandates that manufacturers must demonstrate adequate after-sales service capabilities corresponding to their export volumes. Companies lacking overseas service networks will be barred from independently handling exports.
Despite the intense focus on NEVs, the overall vehicle export market also grew, increasing by 14.8% to 4.95 million units. In this broader context, Chery remains the largest exporter, with 936,000 units, accounting for 18.9% of the total. The combination of soaring NEV exports, aggressive global localization, and tightening government regulation signals a new, more mature phase for China’s automotive industry on the world stage.
