Chinese electric vehicles enter South Korea: market share already more than one-third

A report released by the Korea Institute of Industrial Economics and Technology (KIET) on the 10th of this month shows that Chinese electric cars have risen rapidly in the Korean market, taking up 33.1% of the market share.

The report pointed out that the import of Chinese-made Teslas into Korea is the main reason why the share of Chinese electric cars in the Korean market has risen from 14 percent last year to 33.1 percent this year.

Chinese EVs have been dominating the global market, accounting for more than 68 percent of global production last year and in the first half of this year, respectively. In the Thai market, 84.2 percent of last year's EV sales came from Chinese brands, while in the European market, the share of Chinese EVs exceeded 18 percent in the first half of this year.

The institute's report also highlights the significant price difference between cars made in China and those produced in other countries.

The average price of Chinese-branded EVs in major markets is half that of other brands, a price competitiveness that is attributed to a well-developed domestic supply chain for components, with more than 70 percent of the world's battery production capacity concentrated in China.

The institute emphasized that the underlying problem is the high price of Korean EVs, which cannot be solved by subsidies alone, and also highlighted the need for innovation in production methods and supply chain efficiency, suggesting that a thorough analysis should first be conducted to understand the source of China's price competitiveness.

In response to the slowdown in EV and battery sales in Korea and the rise of EVs in China, the institute sees an urgent need to develop a strategy, recommending the pursuit of differentiation in various aspects such as autonomous driving, smart features and design, while emphasizing the need to adjust investment plans and operational plans in line with market trends and new forecasts for the BEV market.