China’s car sales growth slowed to its weakest pace in three years in 2025, with automakers struggling to offset a cooling domestic market.
Last month, sales fell 14.5% year-on-year to 2.28 million units, worsening from an 8.5% decline in November the largest drop since February 2024, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
For the full year, car sales rose 3.9%, down from 5.3% growth in 2024, marking the slowest annual increase in three years.
Electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) outsold gasoline vehicles for the first time annually. However, their sales growth slowed sharply to 17.6%, down from 40.7% in 2024.
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Domestic demand weakened in the final quarter, as many provinces cut or suspended government subsidies for trade-ins amid funding shortages. This intensified competition in the world’s largest car market.
Automakers including Changan, FAW, Li Auto, and Nio failed to meet their 2025 sales targets.
BYD, China’s largest automaker, posted its slowest sales growth in five years but narrowly achieved its revised target of 4.6 million vehicles.
Chinese automakers ramped up overseas sales to offset domestic weakness. BYD sold over 1 million vehicles abroad, surpassing Tesla as the world’s largest EV maker.
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Overall, car exports rose 19.4% to 5.79 million units, while EV and PHEV exports jumped 86.2% to 2.42 million units, exceeding CPCA expectations. The association had forecast 10% overall export growth and zero growth for EV exports in 2025.
Esther Ososanya is an investigative journalist with Pinnacle Daily, reporting across health, business, environment, metro, Fct and crime. Known for her bold, empathetic storytelling, she uncovers hidden truths, challenges broken systems, and gives voice to overlooked Nigerians. Her work drives national conversations and demands accountability one powerful story at a time.
