China Passes Japan to Become World's Top Auto Exporter
China has passed Japan to become the world's top vehicle exporter, according to data from auto industry groups in the two countries.
Japan had been the largest vehicle exporter since 2017.
Japanese car companies exported 4.42 million vehicles in 2023, an increase of 16% from 2022, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) said.
Japanese manufacturers also sold about 4.78 million vehicles in Japan, JAMA said.
Chinese carmakers said they exported 4.91 million vehicles in 2023, a jump of over 50% from 2022.
China's surplus production of vehicles for its own market, as well as its growing production of electric vehicles (EVs), helped cause the big increase in exports, Nikkei Asia said.
Chinese companies increased production in 2022 and 2023 because they were able to make electronic chips locally, while vehicle manufacturers in other countries were affected by a global chip shortage, S&P Global Mobility said.
The EU and the US have also said the Chinese government's support for EV manufacturers may give Chinese exports an unfair advantage in global trade.
The EU started an investigation into Chinese EV exports in September 2023, Reuters said.
US President Joe Biden's government is also discussing whether to increase taxes on some imports from China, including EVs, The Wall Street Journal said.
About 70% of vehicles exported from China in 2023 were powered by gasoline, the Chinese government said.
Many of those exports went from China to Russia, said Sarah Tan of Moody's Analytics.
"After Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, many auto manufacturers had left the country only to have that gap filled by Chinese manufacturers," Tan told CNBC.
Tan said the value of vehicle exports from China to Russia in 2023 was about six times their value in 2022.
Mexico was another large importer of gasoline-powered cars from China in 2023, she said.
