Faced with challenges such as intensified global trade barriers and geopolitical fluctuations, China's automobile industry has delivered an export answer sheet with counter-trend growth by relying on its first-mover advantage in new energy transformation. The latest data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers shows that from January to April 2025, my country's total automobile exports reached 1.937 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 6%, of which 642,000 new energy vehicles were exported, a year-on-year surge of 52.6%, becoming an important engine for stabilizing foreign trade. Despite the complex and changing external environment, Chinese automakers have demonstrated strong risk resistance through technology upgrades and market diversification strategies.

In April 2025, China's monthly automobile exports reached 517,000 vehicles, continuing a stable trend. It is worth noting that the exports of traditional fuel vehicles and new energy vehicles present a 'two-faced' situation: 317,000 traditional fuel vehicles were exported, a year-on-year decrease of 18.7%, while 200,000 new energy vehicles were exported, a year-on-year surge of 76%, becoming the core driving force for growth. From the cumulative data, 1.295 million traditional fuel vehicles were exported from January to April, down 7.9% year-on-year, while the export share of new energy vehicles climbed to 33%, up 10 percentage points from the same period last year, confirming the acceleration of the 'oil-electric switch' trend. Among the subdivided technical routes, plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) performed particularly well, with 60,000 vehicles exported in April, a year-on-year increase of 140%, and a total of 212,000 vehicles exported from January to April, up 150% year-on-year, far exceeding the growth rate of pure electric vehicles. Sun Xiaohong, Secretary-General of the Automobile Internationalization Professional Committee of the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products, pointed out that plug-in hybrid vehicles have the advantage of balancing endurance and fuel economy, and are in great demand in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and other regions with imperfect charging infrastructure, becoming a 'weapon' to seize emerging markets.

The regional market has significant differentiation characteristics, and emerging economies have become an important growth pole for Chinese auto companies. According to the data from the China Passenger Car Association, among the top ten destinations for China's auto exports in the first quarter of 2025, emerging markets such as Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia occupy six seats. With its geographical location and the advantages of the free trade agreement, Mexico has become China's largest automobile exporter, and the export of new energy passenger cars has doubled year-on-year; oil-rich countries in the Middle East are accelerating the 'de-oiling' strategy, and Chinese new energy vehicles are seizing the high-end market with high cost performance; although the Russian market is affected by geopolitics, the export volume in April has stabilized month-on-month, but the market share of Chinese brands remains at a high level of 55%, and fuel models such as Chery and Haval continue to fill the gap left by European and American car companies after their withdrawal. It is worth noting that Chinese car companies are deepening their layout through 'localized production + industrial chain going overseas'. For example, SAIC Group's vehicle factories in Thailand and Indonesia have realized localized assembly of electric vehicles, effectively avoiding tariff barriers.

Commercial vehicle exports have shown counter-cyclical resilience, in contrast to the slowdown in passenger car growth. From January to April, the cumulative export of commercial vehicles reached 327,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 13.7%. Among them, the performance of new energy commercial vehicles was particularly outstanding: 10,000 units were exported in April, a year-on-year increase of 350%, mainly benefiting from the electrification transformation of overseas logistics and the increase in urban bus orders; driven by infrastructure projects along the 'Belt and Road' in Central Asia and Africa, the export of heavy engineering vehicles increased by more than 20% year-on-year. Sun Xiaohong analyzed that most commercial vehicle purchasers are corporate customers, which are less affected by short-term consumption fluctuations, and Chinese products have significant advantages in durability and cost control, which provides support for their export stability.

The 'going overseas' strategy of leading automakers has achieved remarkable results, but market differentiation has intensified. BYD's exports in April increased by 90.8% year-on-year, and its cumulative exports from January to April doubled year-on-year. Its plug-in hybrid model 'DM-i' technology is in short supply in Latin American and Southeast Asian markets; SAIC Group, relying on the MG brand, has exceeded 3% of the European new energy vehicle market share, and exported more than 80,000 vehicles in April alone; new car-making forces such as Weilai and Xiaopeng have entered Northern Europe through the 'direct sales + subscription' model, and high-end electric vehicle exports have increased by 40% month-on-month. However, companies that rely on fuel vehicles are facing pressure. Among the top ten traditional fuel vehicle exporters in April, six experienced a year-on-year decline, with the largest decline reaching 35%.

Potential risks should not be ignored. Customs data showed that the growth rate of vehicle export value in April was significantly lower than the growth rate of quantity, reflecting the prevalence of the 'price-for-volume' strategy. Industry experts warned that policies such as the EU carbon tariff and the US 'Inflation Reduction Act' may ferment in the second half of the year, coupled with the localization requirements of some countries, and the model that relies solely on exports will face challenges. Sun Xiaohong suggested that Chinese automakers need to accelerate their transformation toward 'technology export + brand premium' and at the same time build a global supply chain system through overseas factory construction, battery standard cooperation, etc. to cope with the increasingly complex international trade environment.