Chinese invasion of the Czech market: Sales of cars from China increased fourfold in the Czech Republic last year

According to the secretary of the association Josef Pokorný, the vast majority of cars manufactured in China and sold in the Czech Republic bear the logos of traditional established brands. The most, a total of 2,609, belongs to the originally British brand MG, followed by Tesla with 522 and Honda with 198. Then Volvo (96) and Dongfeng (49).

“These are cars that roll off the production lines in China, because Chinese companies own or co-own some brands, such as MG (SAIC) or Volvo (Geely Holding). It might surprise someone that the Dacia electric cars sold in Europe are also manufactured in China, and as registrations show, the vast majority of Tesla cars registered in the Czech Republic also left the gates of a Chinese factory. On the contrary, new Teslas made in the USA are only rarely sold in Europe,” noted Pokorný.

According to Pokorný, with the gradual expansion of electromobility, there is often talk of an offensive of affordable electric cars from China. “While every fifth electric car on the European market is Chinese, in the Czech Republic the number of registered cars made in China remains low,” he added. He pointed out that, for example, in the case of motorcycles and quad bikes, the share of Chinese production on the Czech market has been increasing for many years.

Next to MG, BYD or Dongfeng are the best-selling Chinese cars in Europe. However, the growing presence of Chinese automakers in Europe has also prompted retaliation from the European Union. In October, she launched an investigation into subsidies for Chinese manufacturers, which she says are disrupting the electric car market. In several cases, Chinese car manufacturers are also trying to move part of their production to Europe. For example, Chery is to produce in Barcelona, ​​Spain, Dongfeng Motor is discussing production in Italy, and Leapmotor will start producing small electric cars at the Stellantis factory in Tychy, Poland.

In total, 221,422 new passenger cars were sold in the Czech Republic last year, which is a year-on-year increase of 15 percent.