Inventory of China's automobile exports in the first half of 2024: Chery occupies 3 seats in the top 10, BYD surges

Chinese auto brands have been going overseas for more than 20 years, but before 2020, they had always been in the stage of laying the foundation, hovering around one million vehicles for many years.

From 2021 to the present, China's automobile exports have begun to surge, with the export volumes in the past three years reaching 2.19 million, 3.4 million, and 5.22 million vehicles respectively, surpassing Japan to become the global automobile export champion.

According to the China Passenger Car Association, China's passenger car exports reached 2.247 million units from January to June 2024, a year-on-year increase of 33%. At this rate, China's passenger car exports in 2024 are expected to approach 7 million units.

Which domestic models have performed better in exports this year?

The detailed data for June has not yet been released, but the overall development trend can be seen from the data from January to May. These leading export models represent the great achievements made by China's automobile industry.

The top two are Chery Tiggo 7 and Omenda. The former exported 78,700 vehicles in January-May, a year-on-year increase of 1,451.74%; the latter exported 68,600 vehicles in January-May, a year-on-year increase of 252.19%.

Chery is the domestic brand with the highest proportion of overseas sales. In June 2024, Chery's sales reached 200,000 vehicles, of which 97,000 were exported, accounting for nearly half. Tiggo 7 and Ou Mengda did not perform well in the domestic market, but the demand in the overseas market was quite strong, so they became the main force for domestic brands to go overseas.

However, it should also be noted that the vast majority of Chery's sales, both domestically and overseas, are contributed by traditional fuel vehicles. As the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in overseas markets increases, Chery's product structure also needs to be adjusted in a timely manner.

The Geely BinYue ranked third, with exports reaching 56,300 units from January to May, up 62.56% year-on-year. This car has been squeezed out of the 10,000-unit monthly sales club in the domestic market and gradually withdrawn from Geely's main lineup, but due to its strong competitiveness, this car is quite popular in overseas markets such as Southeast Asia and Russia.

Geely BinYue's performance in the domestic market is not very strong, mainly because it is squeezed by domestic new energy models, but this car is very popular overseas under the name of Coolray. This also proves from the side that the trends of the Chinese and overseas automobile markets have diverged. The Chinese market is transforming too fast, and those fuel vehicles that are looked down upon by domestic consumers can still dominate the overseas market.

Are you familiar with this situation? Yes, before the rise of domestic new energy vehicles, Volkswagen, Toyota and other manufacturers used this strategy. Their classic models were always launched in China later than in overseas markets. Now Chinese manufacturers are beginning to follow suit.

The two cars ranked fourth and fifth are MG ZS and MG 3. The export volume of MG ES from January to May reached 46,800 units, while the export volume of MG 3 reached 42,400 units, a year-on-year increase of 480.81%.

MG's exports have two distinct characteristics.

1. It is mainly sold to developed countries such as the European Union, rather than the Southeast Asian, African and Latin American markets favored by manufacturers such as Chery and Geely.

This is mainly because the MG brand was acquired by SAIC from the UK and is highly accepted by European consumers. In addition, MG's own product performance is also constantly improving, so it is easier to sell in large quantities.

1. MG is even more ruthless than Chery and Geely. Its two main models sold to Europe have basically disappeared in the Chinese market.

MG ZS is a heavyweight SUV launched by MG a few years ago, but it is basically no longer seen in the domestic market; MG 3 is even more powerful. This small car has been discontinued in the domestic market for many years, but it can still dominate the European market.

BYD Song PLUS is BYD's main model in China, and it is also very popular in overseas markets. From January to May, the car sold 40,800 units, ranking sixth among domestic models exported overseas, a year-on-year increase of 698.96%, which shows that BYD's early preparations in overseas markets have gradually played a role.

However, it should be noted that the new energy transition in the EU market is showing signs of slowing down, and EU officials have imposed tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. All BYD's exported models are new energy models. The target is too large and there are many competitors, so it is easy to be affected by some unstable factors.

The seventh place is Geely's low-end model Emgrand, with exports reaching 38,200 units from January to May, a year-on-year increase of 167.53%. It is another export-oriented car under Geely.

Geely Emgrand has the same strategy in the domestic and overseas markets, relying on lower prices to attract users and then using low prices and high configurations to build reputation.

In fact, whether in the Chinese market or overseas markets, low-end models are the main force in the automobile market. As long as the product performance of Emgrand does not decline, it will be able to occupy an important position in the overseas market.

Great Wall is also a major exporter among Chinese manufacturers. However, from January to May, only one model of Great Wall, Haval First Love, made it into the top 10 in terms of export and import volume, with a cumulative export volume of 34,400 units, a year-on-year increase of 44.21%.

Interestingly, Haval First Love is also a car that was eliminated from the Chinese market. After the first generation of this car was launched in 2021, it has never been updated. The weird name and unremarkable product performance are the reasons for its failure, but this car is selling well overseas under the name of "JOLION", which is a typical example of a flower blooming inside the wall but fragrant outside the wall.

From January to May, Chery Tiggo 3x ranked 9th in domestic car exports with 34,100 vehicles sold. This car is a low-end small SUV with a starting price of 49,900 yuan in China. Its average monthly sales in 2024 were less than 1,000 units, and it was basically marginalized, but it has been recognized by many users in overseas markets.

This situation is not surprising. The competitiveness of a car depends not only on the performance of the car itself, but also on the environment it is in. China is the most competitive auto market in the world. One country accounts for 30% of the global market share. Major manufacturers are fighting here. Models like Tiggo 3x, which have good performance, have been squeezed to the edge of the market.

However, Chery's overseas markets basically do not have a complete automotive industry chain, so the Tiggo 3x can continue to shine. If nothing unexpected happens, this situation will continue for a few years.

The tenth place is BYD's Haibao, which exported 28,500 vehicles from January to May. Compared with its domestic sales, this result is not very impressive. In the domestic market, Haibao sells just over 10,000 vehicles per month, which is relatively backward among BYD's main models.

But it should be noted that the export sales of this car from January to May increased by 14680.31%. This first shows that BYD did not have an overseas layout before, and the starting point was too low, so there was such a terrifying growth rate. In fact, BYD's exports from January to June 2024 reached 81,000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 10.6 times, which was also due to the low base in the early stage.

Secondly, it also proves that BYD's models are more competitive overseas. In the long run, it has the potential to grow into a world-class automobile manufacturer like Volkswagen and Toyota.

Overall, the situation of China's automobile exports in 2024 is encouraging, but there are also some problems that need to be solved.

First, the overall export volume is still relatively low.

Chery Automobile's exports from January to June exceeded 500,000 vehicles, and the annual export volume is expected to exceed 1 million vehicles, but there is still a significant gap compared with Toyota and other manufacturers. Toyota's current annual sales volume is around 10 million vehicles, and the Japanese domestic market only contributes 10%. In comparison, there is currently no Chinese manufacturer that can be called a world-class manufacturer.

Secondly, when Chinese automobile manufacturers go overseas, they will also encounter interference from some off-market factors, such as the imposition of tariffs on Chinese automobiles by the European Union, Turkey, the United States, and the impact of political changes in countries such as India and Argentina.

Chinese manufacturers generally lack experience in operating in overseas markets, which requires a long period of accumulation. However, in the long run, Chinese cars, which have advantages in technology and price, will achieve greater results in exports. The current results are just a good start.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.