(Yicai Global) Oct. 12 -- China’s automobile exports reached a record high in the first three quarters on the back of surging sales of new energy vehicles, which more than doubled from the same time last year.

China sold 2.1 million autos abroad in the nine months ended Sept. 30, a jump of 55.5 percent from a year earlier, according to data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers yesterday. Electric cars accounted for 18.4 percent of this at 389,000 units.

In the month of September, China’s auto exports soared 73.9 percent year on year to 301,000 units. Of this, NEV sales accounted for 50,000 units, twice the number last year.

Prices have also gone up. The average price of exported cars was USD16,400 in the first eight months, up from USD12,900 in 2018, said Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the association. In August, the average price rose to USD18,900. This is largely on the back on bigger volumes of electric cars, which cost more. The average price of an NEV in August was USD25,800.

China’s NEVs have now started to enter developed countries such as Norway, the Netherlands and the UK. Almost 20 percent of the electric cars sold in Europe between January and August came from China, according to Junte Business Consulting.

China became the world’s largest exporter of NEVs in 2021, supplying one-third of the globe's electric cars, said Wang Jinzhao, director of the industrial economy research department at the State Council’s Development Research Center. That was the first year that China’s NEV exports topped 2 million units.

Changing Tactics

Many Chinese auto manufacturers have started to change their overseas sales model from foreign trade to directly positioning themselves abroad. SAIC Motor, BYD and Nio, for instance, have set up sales and operations branches as well as research and development hubs overseas to provide a better service to their foreign customers.

They are also expanding their reach. Shenzhen-based BYD said recently that it will enter Japan and the EU. Earlier this month, Nio said it will provide system-wide services in Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark.

Meanwhile, they are eyeing the Southeast Asian market, which is dominated by Japanese auto manufacturers. Southeast Asia has a lot of potential, the head of the overseas business for a NEV company told Yicai Global. The region’s top economies are supporting the NEV sector, but Japanese carmakers have been slow to respond, allowing Chinese auto companies room to expand.

And a number of Chinese carmakers, such as Great Wall Motors and BYD, will use the upcoming Paris Motor Show as a stepping stone to introduce their marques to the European market.

Editors: Shi Yi, Kim Taylor