China still can't force Europeans to switch to electric cars. And now the latest export figures for electric cars show that sales in our latitudes are plummeting.
Chinese electric car exports saw a noticeable decline in February. Figures show an 18 percent drop in Chinese electric car exports. The decline is seen in comparison with the same month last year. Europe is particularly affected, and declining Tesla sales may play a role.
Several factors could be behind the decline. Tariffs on Chinese goods in Europe are cited as a possible reason. The loss of government incentives could also have an effect.
At the same time, demand for plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) is increasing. This could shift the focus away from pure electric vehicles.
Bloomberg writes.
Finally, Tesla is mentioned. Some customers may be waiting for an updated Model Y. Others may not want to be associated with CEO Elon Musk.
The decline is particularly evident in Europe. Exports to European countries fell by a whopping 30 percent in February. This is a significant deterioration from January, when the decline was only 14 percent.
Europe hit hard by the fall
Spain saw a 49 percent drop in imports of Chinese electric cars, equivalent to 2,664 cars in February.
Belgium is a major buyer of Chinese electric cars. The country received 10,105 cars in February, but the figure masks a drop in demand. The exact percentage drop for Belgium is not clear from the available data.
It is worth noting that some of the exported cars carry Western brand names. They are simply produced in China.
South Korea also saw a sharp decline. Exports there plunged by 51 percent to 3,151 units, indicating a significant decline in interest.
Exports to the United Arab Emirates also fell, with a 20 percent decline, corresponding to 3,231 cars.
Asia is holding its ground – yet
However, not all markets showed the same negative trend. The UK only saw a small decline of 2.9 percent. This corresponds to 8,362 imported Chinese electric cars.
The Philippines was almost stable, with a decline of only 0.9 percent. They received 8,225 cars from China in February.
Some countries even experienced significant growth. Indonesia increased imports by 79 percent, and Turkey by a whopping 131 percent.
Mexico stood out with a 623 percent increase. However, this only corresponds to 7,847 cars, which is still fewer than Belgium, the United Kingdom and the Philippines.
Asia remains the largest destination for China's electric car exports, with half of all exported electric cars going to Asian countries.
Here the decline was more modest at only 2.7 percent, indicating more stable demand in the region.
However, Thailand, a key Asian market, saw a 17 percent decline. This corresponds to 6,252 cars and is close to the global average.
Looking at the figures by region, exports fell everywhere, with the only exception being Africa.
However, Africa only accounts for a very small portion of total exports. Only one in 73 exported Chinese electric cars ends up in Africa.
The figures cover the month of February 2025. They are compared to February 2024. The analysis of China's customs data was conducted by the research institute Bloomberg.
A total of 92,625 electric cars were exported from China in February. The general slowdown may give Western car manufacturers some breathing room in the competition.
The development of the electric car market is constant. You can read much more about new electric cars , tests and news from the automotive world here at Boosted.dk. We keep you updated on everything from Tesla to the latest Chinese brands and trends in the market.
