Are Chinese Electric Vehicles the Trend? China Surpasses the US to Become the 2nd Largest Importer

Electric Vehicle Imports Total $538 Million from January to October
China Rises to 2nd Largest Importer After Germany
Longtime Leader USA Drops to 3rd Place
Expansion Driven by Price Competitiveness in Commercial Vehicles
"EV Technology Leads" - Growing Influence of Chinese Cars

China has become the second-largest importer of electric vehicles (EVs) in South Korea. This is due to an increase in imports of Chinese-made electric commercial vehicles, as well as Tesla shifting its export volume destined for Korea from the U.S. to its Chinese factory. Especially since the second half of this year, China has surged to first place in monthly import volume, making it certain that China will become the largest importer starting next year.

According to the electric vehicle trade statistics by country on the 20th, the import volume of Chinese-made EVs from January to October this year was recorded at $538 million. This has already far exceeded last year’s annual import amount of $166 million, and China has overtaken the U.S. to become the second-largest importer by country. The U.S. had consistently held the top spot since EV imports began to increase significantly in 2019, but it dropped to third place starting last month. Germany remains the largest importer of EVs.

At the Japan Mobility Show 2023 held last month, Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD exhibited the electric sedan Seal.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

This ranking could change as early as the end of this year. On a monthly basis, China has already overtaken Germany to take first place in the second half of this year. Last month, the import value of Chinese-made EVs was $172 million, more than twice Germany’s $70 million.

In the domestic finished car market, especially in electric vehicles, China’s influence has grown significantly. According to data from Kaizyu Data Research Institute, the most sold imported commercial vehicle model in Korea last month was the Chinese Geely small electric cargo truck, Seada. It began sales domestically in the second half of the year and ranks third in cumulative annual sales. Additionally, many Chinese brands occupy the top ranks in imported commercial vehicle sales. Among the top 10, six models are from Chinese manufacturers, including Shenyuan’s ET Van, BYD’s T4K and eBus12, and Dongfeng’s Masada Van.

Many Chinese vehicles are waiting to enter the Korean market. Companies such as Dongfeng-affiliated Fujian and Weichai, which manufactures special-purpose vehicles and previously focused on local sales, are now partnering with domestic distributors to prepare for Korean launches. They recently completed environmental certifications for noise and emissions ahead of their domestic release.

Tesla's new Model 3 is exhibited at a fair held in Beijing, China, last September.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Passenger cars are still mostly European brands manufactured in Chinese factories and exported to Korea. Representative examples include electric vehicles from BMW and Mini, and sedans from Volvo. The Volvo EX30, an electric vehicle launching in Korea next month, is built on a platform developed by Geely and manufactured in China. Industry insiders view the launch of passenger electric vehicles from Geely and BYD in Korea as only a matter of time.

As the electrification transition improves the usage environment of EVs and price competitiveness strengthens, more consumers are seeking Chinese-made electric vehicles. There is also a growing perception that while China lags in internal combustion engine technology, it has long focused on developing electric vehicles. Although the government revised policies earlier this year to differentiate subsidies based on battery performance targeting Chinese EVs, the market atmosphere prioritizes price competitiveness.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, China ranked outside the top 10 among all automobile import countries, including EVs. Since then, it has steadily increased, rising to fifth place last year and third place this year. The increase in imports of Chinese-made finished vehicles is largely due to electric vehicles. More than half of the import value of Chinese-made vehicles consists of EVs. In contrast, Germany and the U.S., which are major automobile importers for Korea, have EV shares in the 10% range.

China’s influence is even greater in automobile parts. From January to October this year, the import value of automobile parts was $2.3 billion, accounting for nearly 40% of Korea’s total automobile parts imports of $5.855 billion. Due to geographical proximity, Korea has long imported various parts from China. Until three or four years ago, the share of Chinese parts was around 20-30%, but it has rapidly increased recently. Many domestic parts manufacturers with factories in China produce locally and import the parts back to Korea.

There is also an evaluation that Korean companies are ahead of domestic finished car manufacturers in the electrification field by acquiring technology from Chinese companies. A typical example is Renault Korea’s plan to produce Polestar electric vehicles at its Busan plant. Polestar is an electric vehicle brand under Geely. Although Renault Korea has a research organization for vehicle development domestically, it has chosen to receive production orders from Geely rather than develop vehicles directly.

Polestar 4 being produced at the Geely Automobile factory in Hangzhou Bay, China. From 2025, the same model will also be manufactured at Renault Korea's Busan plant in South Korea.
[Photo by Renault Korea Motors] [Image source=Yonhap News]

Prior to this, Renault was developing a new car using a hybrid platform primarily developed by China’s Geely. Earlier this year, Geely acquired a 34% stake in Renault Korea, becoming the second-largest shareholder. Geely has made significant profits based on domestic demand and has acquired several foreign automobile companies in succession. It owns Volvo, the electric vehicle brand Polestar, the British high-performance car maker Lotus, and LondonEV, which produces the iconic London black cabs. Geely is also a major shareholder in historic companies such as Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin.

KG Mobility has also strengthened cooperation with BYD in the battery and eco-friendly vehicle sectors. KG plans to assemble battery packs from battery cells supplied by BYD at its domestic factory and apply them to finished vehicles. These include the Torres electric vehicle and the currently developing electric pickup truck. They also plan to jointly develop hybrid vehicles targeting a 2025 launch. BYD produces about 300,000 units monthly, expanding its scale to compete with Tesla for the top spot in the global electric vehicle market as well as in China. BYD’s battery technology is also regarded as more internalized than that of any other finished car manufacturer.

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