Auto exports soar in H1 on booming NEV demand

China's vehicle exports jumped in the first half, propelled in part by increased demand for new energy vehicles, a top industry association said on Tuesday.

Of the total 2.14 million vehicles shipped overseas, 1.78 million units were passenger vehicles, up 88.4 percent from the same period last year, while buses and trucks made up 361,000 units, up 31.9 percent, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Shipments of NEVs, which include electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, soared 160 percent year-on-year to hit 534,000 units between January and June, the data showed.

Russia, Mexico and Belgium were among the top three destinations for China's vehicle exports, while Belgium, the United Kingdom and Thailand were popular destinations for NEVs from China, said the General Administration of Customs based on exports in the first five months of the year.

China overtook Germany as the world's second-largest vehicle exporter in 2022. Since then, more Chinese carmakers have been eyeing the potential in overseas markets.

In the past two weeks, five companies including GAC's electric arm Aion have unveiled plans to go global.

Aion inked a deal with Thai distributor Gold Integrate in late June and is planning to build a subsidiary in Thailand later this year which will be in charge of its business in Southeast Asia.

Thailand is the largest automobile manufacturer and exporter in Southeast Asia, with its EV industry supported by favorable policies including tax reductions and cash subsidies, said Aion.

SAIC Motor, China's largest vehicle maker by sales, said it is looking for a location in Europe for a vehicle manufacturing plant.

Europe is expected to become the company's first overseas market where annual sales will exceed 200,000 units, said Yu De, managing director of SAIC's international business department. Last year, SAIC's sales in the European market surpassed 100,000 units.

Zeekr, a premium electric brand under Geely Holding Group, said on Monday that it will start presales of two models in Israel in the fourth quarter of this year.

The foray into the Middle Eastern market comes days after its announcement to enter Europe, with deliveries to start in Sweden and the Netherlands later this year.

Zeekr said it will launch its vehicles in other European markets including Denmark, Germany, France and Norway in 2024.

Besides surging exports, carmakers have seen sales soar in the domestic market as well.

They produced 13.25 million vehicles in the first half and delivered 13.24 million units, up 9.3 percent and 9.8 percent year-on-year, according to data from the automobile association.

Xu Haidong, vice-chief engineer of CAAM, said the almost double-digit growth in sales was the result of a number of factors, including a lower base in the same period last year and financial stimulus measures from carmakers and the government.

Passenger vehicles, which took the lion's share of China's vehicle market, saw deliveries hit 11.27 million units in the first half, up 8.8 percent year-on-year.

The premium vehicle market saw even more robust demand.

Statistics from CAAM show that sales of China-made premium vehicles from both Chinese and international brands totaled 2.03 million units in the first half, up 19.7 percent year-on-year.

Sales of NEVs hit a record as well. A total of 3.75 million EVs and plug-in hybrids were sold in the country in the first half, up 44.1 percent year-on-year and accounting for 28.3 percent of all new vehicle sales in the same period.

The automobile industry body expects total NEV sales to hit 9 million units this year, up from 6.89 million in 2022.