According to Automotive News Europe, Chinese automakers maintained a strong growth momentum in Europe in Q1, but EV sales were hindered by the EU's new tariff policy.
Preliminary data from market analysis firm Dataforce showed that sales of Chinese car brands in Europe surged 78% YoY to 148,096 units in the first three months of this year, with market share rising from 2.5% in the same period of 2024 to 4.5%. However, sales of Chinese-made pure EVs in Europe grew only 29%, in line with the overall EV market growth, with market share remaining flat at 7.9% YoY. Pure EVs accounted for 29% of total sales of Chinese brands, down from 41% in 2024.
In addition, sales of plug-in hybrid vehicles from Chinese brands in Europe soared 368% (from a low base), with market share nearly tripling to 14%. Sales of hybrid and gasoline car models increased 100%, with market share rising from 44% in 2024 to 47%.
The EU proposed allowing automakers to meet 2025 emission targets over three years instead of one, adopting a "savings and borrowing" mechanism, meaning automakers that fail to meet targets in one year can catch up in subsequent years. However, the new CO2 emission standards still require automakers to sell 20% to 25% EVs.
Automotive News Europe reported that if SAIC's MG and Chery maintain their current sales structure for the rest of the year, they may struggle to meet 2025 CO2 emission targets. Dataforce's preliminary data showed that EVs accounted for 13% of MG's Q1 sales, with CO2 emissions exceeding the target (95.7g/km) by over 15g/km.
Chery's two European brands, Omoda and Jaecoo, held 6% of the pure EV market and 20% of the plug-in hybrid market, respectively, with CO2 emissions 47g/km higher than the 94g/km target.
MG recently stated that it may avoid fines by merging emission data with other automakers or reducing the share of gasoline models (38% in Q1).
Overall, in Q1, MG remained the top-selling Chinese automaker in Europe, with sales up one-third to 76,583 units. BYD's sales nearly quadrupled to 27,365 units, ranking second, ahead of Chery (sales surged from 413 units in Q1 last year to 15,663 units).