Russia Is Boosting China's Car Sales

Russia is propelling China’s car sales, having imported 287,000 finished vehicles from the country in the months January to May 2023. With many global manufacturers having pulled out of Russia since the invasion of Ukraine, China is plugging the gap as it continues to carry out business with its neighbor.

As the following chart shows, Russia has become the leading international destination for vehicles made in China. Customs data compiled by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers and featured by Bloomberg shows that the next biggest importers are Mexico (159,000), Belgium (120,000), Australia (101,000) and the United Kingdom (90,000).

China has likely overtaken Japan to become the leading car exporter in the world. According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), China is thought to have exported 5.26 million vehicles in 2023. Japan is exstimated to have exported only 4.3 million cars in that time frame.

In addition to the interest from Russian buyers, China’s vehicle sales growth is also thanks to the success of its automakers such as BYD and Chery, which have performed well abroad. BYD recently overtook Tesla, after having sold more than 500,000 battery electric vehicles (BEV) worldwide in the fourth quarter of 2023.