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Steering into a New Era: China's Auto Industry Cements Global Leadership with Historic Leap in 2025

     Today, the official release of the 2025 annual industry data by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) serves as a substantial testament to the times, showcasing the exceptional resilience of China's automotive industry amidst a complex international environment and profound industry transformation. Behind the data lies not just a series of record-breaking numbers, but a comprehensive and profound structural victory, marking the most milestone step yet in China's transition from a "large automotive country" to a "powerful automotive nation."

Twin Engines Drive, Building the Solid Foundation of the World's Largest Production and Sales Base

     According to the report, China's automobile production and sales in 2025 were recorded at 34.531 million units and 34.4 million units, respectively, achieving double-digit year-on-year growth. This is not merely a quantitative accumulation but signifies China's seventeenth consecutive year as the global leader in automobile production and sales, expanding its leading advantage to an unprecedented margin. The substance of this "world's largest" status lies in its growth engine having shifted from past singular scale expansion to a dual-driven model of "endogenous growth" and "extensive expansion."

     In terms of endogenous growth, consumption upgrading and technological innovation have become the core drivers. The annual sales share of Chinese brand passenger vehicles historically climbed to nearly 70%, successfully breaking through and taking the lead in market segments once dominated by foreign brands, such as mainstream SUVs and luxury electric sedans. Behind this lies the annual R&D investments of local enterprises amounting to hundreds of billions of yuan and the formation of a systematic technological moat in areas like intelligent cockpits, autonomous driving, and vehicle architecture. Chen Shihua, Deputy Secretary-General of CAAM, pointed out at the press conference that during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, China's automotive industry not only maintained an annual scale exceeding 30 million units for three consecutive years but also surpassed the ten trillion yuan mark in operating revenue, achieving a simultaneous leap in both "volume" and "quality."

      In terms of extensive expansion, the global influence of Chinese automobiles is reshaping the world map at an unprecedented pace. In 2025, China's automobile export volume exceeded 7 million units in one fell swoop. This figure not only solidifies China's position as the world's largest automobile exporter but also means that for approximately every ten new vehicles on global roads, one comes from China. Crucially, the export content is highly "new" — new energy vehicle (NEV) exports reached 2.615 million units, a sharp increase of 100% year-on-year. From the city streets of Europe to the busy roads of Southeast Asia, Chinese-made intelligent electric vehicles are becoming an indispensable force in the global green mobility transition. The explosive growth in exports is the result of combined advantages in the industrial chain, product competitiveness, and global operational capabilities, signifying that China's automotive industry is deeply integrated into and beginning to lead the global value chain.

The NEV "Tipping Point" Arrives, Establishing Dominant Force Comprehensively

     If there was one most thrilling "historic moment" for China's automotive industry in 2025, it was undoubtedly the official establishment of new energy vehicles as the dominant market force. The annual NEV production and sales volume exceeding 16 million units not only extended the record for an eleventh consecutive year as the global leader but also reached a crucial "tipping point" in the domestic market — its share in domestic new vehicle sales historically surpassed 50%.

     This majority share holds symbolic significance far greater than the number itself. It marks a fundamental reversal in the consumption structure of China's automotive market, with electrification transitioning completely from a "policy-guided option" to the "mainstream market demand." Consumers, voting with their wallets, have proven that new energy vehicles have comprehensively surpassed traditional internal combustion engine vehicles in terms of range, safety, intelligent experience, and total cost of ownership, establishing solid market confidence. Behind this lies the "China speed" coverage of ultra-fast charging networks across major urban and rural areas, the alleviation of "range anxiety" through continuous iterations in battery technology, and the fact that intelligent features have become core purchasing criteria for the new generation of consumers.

Policy and Market in Harmony, Charting a New Blueprint for High-Quality Development

     The achievement of this glory is inseparable from the resonance between precise, forceful policy support and endogenous market forces. In 2025, the enhancement and expansion of the "Two New" policies (large-scale equipment renewal and consumer goods trade-in) effectively stimulated replacement demand in the existing vehicle market, providing crucial support for market growth. Simultaneously, automakers intensively launched nearly a hundred highly competitive new intelligent electric models, covering all scenarios from family use to luxury, and from commuting to off-roading, greatly enriching consumer choice and creating a virtuous cycle of "policy giving a push, and excellent products providing a pull."

     Looking ahead to 2026, the roadmap for the industry's high-quality development has been clearly drawn. With the implementation of top-level designs like the Notice on Implementing the Green Consumption Promotion Initiative, policies will deepen from simply "promoting consumption" to "guiding the green and low-carbon transition." This means support will extend from the purchase phase to the entire lifecycle, including the inclusive development of charging infrastructure, the recycling system for power batteries, and the synergy between automotive data and green energy networks. Deputy Secretary-General Chen Shihua stated that against this backdrop, market expectations will become more stable, and the industry will continue to evolve towards the deep integration of "electrification, intelligence, connectivity, and decarbonization."

Conclusion: Defining the Future with a Global Vision

     The data for 2025 is a footnote to a glorious chapter for China's automotive industry and a prologue to a brand-new era. Standing at the new starting point of annual production and sales exceeding 34 million units, NEV share surpassing 50%, and exports exceeding 7 million units, the mission of China's automotive industry has shifted from "catching up" to "leading."                                                                                                                                                                                               Future competition will be contested on higher dimensions such as intelligent ecosystems, sustainable supply chains, and global brand influence. It is foreseeable that a Chinese automotive industry with innovation as its backbone, green development as its lifeblood, and the global stage as its arena will not only continue to drive the steady progress of its domestic economy but will also contribute irreplaceable Chinese wisdom and solutions to the transformation of the global automotive industry and sustainable human mobility.