Category: Insights

Price war in China’s passenger car market to remain fierce in 2024, says CPCA secretary-general

The process of new manufacturers replacing old ones in the process of establishing a new market order will likely continue for several years until a new landscape is formed, said Cui Dongshu of the CPCA.

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Buying BEV platform in China could be ‘big bang’ for VW stock to win over large investors, says Deutsche Bank

Buying a BEV platform in China could be one of the "big bangs" needed for Volkswagen stock to break out of what can by now only be characterized as being largely ignored by many of the largest asset managers globally, Deutsche Bank said.

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EVs with all-solid-state batteries expected to be in mass production by 2030, doubling range from today, TrendForce says

By then, the energy density of lithium batteries could reach 500 Wh/kg, providing EVs with two to three times the range of liquid lithium batteries and tying the range of fuel vehicles, TrendForce said.

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Local brands expected to capture over 50% of China’s auto market for 1st time this year, AlixPartners says

Chinese automakers have now crossed the inflection point for global influence, with local brands expected to hold 65 percent of the market share in China by 2030, AlixPartners said.

China, the world's largest auto market, has been dominated by foreign brands for many years, but that is about to change with the rapid growth of local brands in the past few years.

This year, China will become the world's largest auto exporter, and for the first time, local brands are expected to overtake overseas brands in market share, AlixPartners, a New York-based consulting firm, said in a report yesterday.

Chinese automakers have now crossed the inflection point for global influence, with local brands expected to hold 65 percent of the market in China by 2030, said Stephen Dyer, co-head of AlixPartners Greater China.

In the first half of 2020, local brands' monthly share of the Chinese auto market was at slightly more than 30 percent, with German and Japanese brands then at around 30 percent and 25 percent, respectively, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

In October 2022, the share of local brands in the Chinese auto market reached 51.53 percent, the first time in history that the monthly share exceeded 50 percent, according to data monitored by CnEVPost.

While local brands are on the rise, foreign brands are gradually declining. In October last year, the share of German brands fell to 19.25 percent and Japanese brands fell to 18.94 percent.

In the first five months of this year, the share of local brands has remained at around 50 percent, including 50.24 percent in May, according to the CPCA.

Chinese automakers are poised to become a dominant force in the global auto industry in the coming years, thanks to government support for new energy vehicle (NEV) companies, automakers' focus on vehicle styling and customer orientation, and the accelerating pace of NEV launches, according to AlixPartners.

The business models evolved by Chinese automakers are also likely to be successful in Europe and the US, and Chinese automakers will become a dominant force in the global auto industry in the coming years, the report said.

However, industry disruption from Chinese manufacturers won't necessarily make quick waves in overseas markets as traditional car companies around the world are focused on dealing with the impact of innovation from , the report also noted.

The success of Chinese NEV brands provides a reference for global automakers, AlixPartners said, adding that local brands are better able to meet the needs of a new generation of tech-savvy consumers while maintaining a strong value for money and offering a better digital marketing experience than joint venture brands.

Models that are popular with Chinese consumers are also increasingly likely to be popular with global consumers, and multinational automakers must be prepared to fundamentally change their working models as Chinese-style competition eventually comes to their home markets as well, the report said.

AlixPartners expects auto sales in China to grow 3 percent in 2023 and then maintain a slow but steady pace to reach a level of 50 million units around 2050.

Retail sales of passenger cars in China were 20.54 million units in 2022, up 1.9 percent year-on-year, with NEVs contributing 5.67 million units, or 27.6 percent, according to the CPCA.

Local brands' share of Chinese auto market in May at 50.24%

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Deutsche Bank on China EV sales: Jun gathering momentum

After the price cut and a series of new models, sales could reach 20,000 units per month in the third quarter, according to Edison Yu's team.

China's major electric vehicle (EV) makers recently announced their June deliveries, and Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu's team provided their take, as usual.

"June EV sales surprised to the upside as demand picked up, likely signaling some normalization in consumer behavior and release of pent-up demand from buyers taking advantage of low prices," the team said in a research note sent to investors today.

(NASDAQ: LI) again led the way among the upstarts, setting a new monthly record, while Nio (NYSE: NIO) saw a large improvement in monthly sales, driven by the speedy ramp-up of the ES6, the team noted.

Looking ahead, pressure will be on Nio and (NYSE: XPEV) to deliver big growth in the second half with new vehicle launches, while Li Auto works to increase its already strong order book, Yu's team said.

As a backdrop, Nio delivered 10,707 vehicles in June, up 73.96 percent from 6,155 in May, though down 17.39 percent from 12,961 a year earlier.

Xpeng delivered 8,620 vehicles in June, up 14.84 percent from May and the fifth sequential growth, despite a 43.64 percent decline from the same month last year.

Li Auto delivered a record 32,575 vehicles in June, surpassing the 30,000 mark for the first time.

delivered 10,620 vehicles in June, up 146.86 percent year-on-year and up 22.38 percent from May.

Yu's team said Nio deliveries were slightly below their forecast, though the new ES6 appears to be ramping up smoothly and should be a bigger contributor in July along with the full month of production of the ET5 Touring.

After the price cut and a slew of new models, Nio could reach 20,000 units per month in the third quarter, the team said.

The team said Xpeng deliveries exceeded their expectations and, most importantly, the initial reception to the new G6 looks increasingly positive.

Looking ahead, Xpeng is on track to hit at least 10,000 deliveries in July and 15,000 in September is doable, the team said.

Here is the full text of the team's research note.

June gathering momentum

June EV sales surprised to the upside as demand picked up, likely signaling some normalization in consumer behavior and release of pent-up demand from buyers taking advantage of low prices.

Total NEV retail sales appear to be tracking around 670k according to preliminary CPCA forecasts or +16 percent MoM (+26 percent YoY).

Li Auto once again led the way among the upstarts setting a new monthly record while Nio saw a large improvement MoM driven by speedy ramp up of ES6.

Looking ahead, the pressure will be on Nio and XPEV to deliver big growth in 2H from new launches while Li Auto strives to increase its already robust order book.

June OEM recap

Li Auto delivered 32,575 vehicles (+15 percent MoM; +150 percent YoY), easily beating our forecast. Looking ahead, management is targeting L8 and L9 to be +10,000 each and L7 at 15,000 in monthly sales for 3Q and then 40,000 total in 4Q.

To support this, we are expecting a cheaper variant of the L9 to be available later in the year.

Separately, the first BEV (Li MEGA) is set to be unveiled in 4Q, catering to the >500k RMB segment.

The company exited the month with 331 retail stores and 323 servicing centers.

Nio delivered 10,707 units (+74 percent MoM; -17 percent YoY), slightly below our forecast.

The new ES6 appears to be ramping up smoothly and should be an even bigger contributor in July along with a full month of ET5 Touring production. New ES8 deliveries also began in the last few days of June.

Following the price cut and slew of new models, we think 20,000 in monthly sales is achievable during 3Q.

Nio exited the month with ~1,500 battery swap stations.

XPeng delivered 8,620 units (+15 percent MoM; -44 percent YoY), ahead of our expectations. P7 sales increased 17 percent MoM to nearly 5,200.

Most importantly, the initial reception to the new G6 is looking increasingly positive.

Starting price will be just 210k RMB and management raised its pre-sale number to +35,000 units (vs. prior +25,000), suggesting a robust pipeline of deliveries for 3Q.

Looking ahead, we expect July can reach at least 10,000 deliveries and 15,000 in September is doable.

Zeekr delivered sales of 10,620 vehicles (+22 percent MoM; +147 percent YoY). Looking ahead, Zeekr is offering some promotions through September on the 001 (likely in response to ET5 Touring competition) including free upgrade options on exterior color, larger 100 kWh battery, dual-motor 4WD, air suspension, and/or charging credits.

In addition, the company is providing special financing offers on all models.

Recall, Zeekr is targeting 140,000 in total unit sales this year (<43,000 through 6 months so far).

Nio deliveries rebound to 10,707 units in Jun as new models bring relief

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China’s extended tax breaks should facilitate steady EV sector growth, Fitch says

PHEVs get the same tax exemption as BEVs, and the extension of the tax break will attract more automakers to the market, Fitch said.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

China last week extended tax incentives for new energy vehicles (NEVs) for four years, a move that in the view of international credit rating agency Fitch Ratings could help renew electrification momentum.

China's extension of tax breaks for electric vehicle (EV) purchases should facilitate steady growth in the sector, while the continued coverage of subsidies for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) reinforces Fitch's view that such vehicles will be a key catalyst for China's transition to EVs, analyst Jing Yang's team said in a June 28 research note.

On June 21, China's Ministry of Finance announced that NEVs with a purchase date between January 1, 2024, and December 31, 2025, will continue to be exempt from vehicle purchase tax, but the exemption will not exceed RMB 30,000 yuan ($4,340) per vehicle.

For NEVs with a purchase date between January 1, 2026 and December 31, 2027, the vehicle purchase tax will be levied at half the normal rate, with a tax reduction of no more than RMB 15,000 per vehicle.

"We believe the renewal of tax waivers for consumers purchasing EVs until end-2025 aligns with market expectations. Purchase taxes will be halved in 2026-2027 and then return to normal levels," Fitch said.

Sales of PHEVs, including extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs), will continue to grow rapidly under the updated policy, with these vehicles receiving the same tax exemption as battery electric vehicles (BEVs), the note said.

PHEVs are a close substitutes to traditional internal combustion engine vehicles because drivers do not suffer from mileage anxiety or charging inconvenience, and are therefore widely seen as a transitional product before the market shifts completely to BEVs, Fitch said.

PHEVs' share of China's EV market soars from 17 percent in 2021 to 28 percent in January-May 2023, Fitch said.

Competition in the PHEVs segment has intensified, and the extension of tax breaks will attract more automakers to the market, according to the note.

Plug-in hybrids are an easier sub-segment for traditional automakers to compete in than BEVs, with Great Wall Motor, and Changan Automobile all launching competitively priced plug-in hybrids this year, Fitch said.

Joint venture brands, despite having a firmer foothold in the market, have been slowed due to their global parent companies' focus on BEVs and less attractive pricing, the note said.

Tax breaks for high-end EVs will remain in place, which could ease local automakers' concerns about upgrading to premium EV brands, did not expect the waivers to be renewed, and should incentivize traditional luxury carmakers to transition faster toward EVs, Fitch said.

The latest program exempts consumers who buy battery swap-enabled EVs from the battery tax for the first time, Fitch noted, saying it expects this to benefit EV brands selling high-end BEVs with battery swap capability and to encourage automakers to adopt the model.

Overall, Fitch believes the subsidy extension will have little impact on EV sales in China in 2023 and continues to forecast EV deliveries to grow by more than 30 percent during the year and EV market penetration to reach 35 percent.

However, the extension could reduce front-loaded purchases in the fourth quarter of 2023, as consumers will no longer be eager to take advantage of expiring tax breaks, Fitch said.

($1 = RMB 7.2506)

China's Ministry of Finance explains in detail how consumers will enjoy NEV tax breaks in 2024-2027

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