Western and Chinese carmakers in China: a new paradigm III. Non-Chinese premium carmakers resist in China
- Unlike non-Chinese mainstream carmakers who have seen their sales declining on the Chinese market in recent years, German Premium carmakers not only resist but progress continuously since their arrival on the Chinese market in the early 2000s. Most of their models are now produced in China, as imports have become increasingly rare. Only the most expensive models still come from Germany or the United States.
- The image of these brands certainly plays a big role in their success on the Chinese market. In 2023, Audi sold 670,000 cars in China compared to 510,000 in 2015. Mercedes sold 690,000 cars in China compared to 255,000 in 2015. BMW sold 745,000 cars in China compared to 287,000 in 2015. These figures show spectacular progress results that are only found among independent Chinese carmakers, although with more modest volumes. The market share of Audi, Mercedes, BMW in China increased from 4.7% in 2017 to 7.3% in 2023.
- The future of German Premium carmakers is, however, not guaranteed in the medium term and even more so in the long term, because Chinese carmakers are increasingly developing Premium models intended for the wealthiest Chinese customers, and the launches of this type of model have been intensified these last two - three years. Often new brands are created to address the premium market. In addition, these brands very often propose battery electric models, which are still underdeveloped among German premium carmakers.