Crowds in face masks cheered each new car as it was driven on stage at the weekend’s Beijing Auto Show. The event – the industry’s major international of the event this year — was hailed as ‘a symbol of hope’ by BMW China CEO Jochen Goller, and the crowd’s enthusiasm allowed manufacturers dare hope that there is life in the Chinese market after car sales collapsed by around 80%. “The confidence is back,” Goller said.
Given its pledge to reduce China’s carbon emissions by 2060, the authorities in the country’s capital will have been pleased to note the number of electric vehicles (EVs) on display at the Beijing Auto Show, not just from domestic EV start-up such as Nio, Expeng (which was also showing off its Kiwigogo flying car), but established players like BMW and Volkswagen, whose ID range of battery-powered vehicle was also there.
Nissan Motors is getting in on the act big time too, with its CEO Makoto Uchida announcing that it would be launching nine new and re-designed electric models expressly for the Chinese market over the next five years. These will include plug-in electric vehicles and hybrid electric cars that charge with a gasoline engine.
“The recovery in the Chinese market has been very remarkable, and our key segments have returned to the previous year’s level if not slightly better,” Uchida predicted through a video link. “I expect this rebound to continue, but we need to watch for signs of trouble.” Although China’s auto sales are still expected to fall by up to 9% this year overall, S&P is predicting that new energy vehicle sales are likely to pick up in the second half; another cause for satisfaction for the authorities and evidence that the strict new emission standards they began introducing last year are helping the acceleration to electrification. Beijing wants 25% of all car sales to be electric by 2025.