Elon Musk claims that Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers will «pretty much demolish» the majority of their rivals
In an effort to challenge well-known names, automakers like BYD, Nio, and Xpeng have increased their sales outside of China within the past two years.
Even though his company, Tesla, is up against fierce competition from these same firms, Elon Musk predicted that Chinese electric manufacturers will have «significant» success outside of China.
“The Chinese car companies are the most competitive car companies in the world. So, I think they will have significant success outside of China depending on what kind of tariffs or trade barriers are established,” Musk stated during Wednesday’s earnings call for Tesla.
The European Union’s executive branch, the European Commission, is presently looking into subsidies provided to Chinese manufacturers of electric vehicles. That investigation started last year and is still ongoing. However, given that Chinese EVs are rapidly entering Europe, there’s a potential the EU will take a closer look at raising tariffs on these vehicles.
BYD has increased sales to markets in Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. In the fourth quarter, BYD sold more battery-powered cars than Tesla. Moreover, European consumers can now purchase cars made by Chinese startups Nio and Xpeng.
Chinese EV companies showed off their products at one of Europe’s biggest auto exhibitions last year. Analysts at the time predicted that these businesses would become a threat to established automakers.
This is not the first time Musk has praised Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers. The billionaire claimed that Chinese electric vehicle companies are «the most competitive in the world» and predicted that they will rank among the top automakers globally last year.
