Musk: "China Leads the World in Electric Vehicles"... Half of Tesla's Global Sales Are in China

Tesla's China Sales Last Year Exceeded Half of Global Sales

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, evaluated China's electric vehicle and renewable energy capabilities as the world's leading.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Wooseok] Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, evaluated China's capabilities in electric vehicles and renewable energy as world-leading.

On the 30th, Musk wrote on the Chinese social networking service (SNS) Weibo, "Few people know that China is the world leader in renewable energy and electric vehicles," adding, "No matter what you think about China, this is a clear fact."

In response, He Xiaopeng, co-founder of the Chinese electric vehicle company 'Xiaopeng,' retweeted Musk's post and stated, "To become a true world leader, another 10 years of effort is needed," and "In the electric vehicle sector, China is only ahead for now; to lead the world, it must dominate the global market commercially as well as in technology and products."

Tesla's sales volume in China last year was 474,600 units, accounting for more than half of Tesla's global sales of 935,222 units last year. Additionally, sales in China surged by 226% compared to the previous year.

Tesla is pushing forward with the construction of its second factory in China, located in Shanghai, which will have an annual production capacity of 450,000 units.

Recently, China's new energy vehicle industry has shown remarkable development. According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), despite production disruptions caused by lockdowns in automotive production hubs such as Shanghai and Jilin Province due to the spread of COVID-19, sales of new energy vehicles (electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, and plug-in hybrid vehicles) in China from January to April this year reached 1.49 million units, more than doubling compared to the same period last year.

Among the top 10 companies in sales volume, except for Tesla (3rd place), all are Chinese companies.

Since 2016, China has implemented various financial support measures, including subsidies, aiming to increase the share of new energy vehicles to 20% by 2025.

According to Reuters, Makoto Uchida, CEO of Nissan, warned, "Local Chinese brands are becoming increasingly strong. Some global brands may disappear from China within 3 to 5 years."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.