🚘“Made in China” Now Drives Europe — Literally
A silent tectonic shift has occurred on Europe’s roads. As of October 2024, China officially overtook the EU in bilateral car trade — exporting more vehicles to Europe than it imports. It’s not just a headline — it’s a paradigm shift.
Back in 2021, Europe was the undisputed heavyweight: over €2B in monthly car exports to China, while imports from China hovered far below €1B. But by early 2025, the picture reversed. Chinese car imports surged — at times flirting with €2B per month — while Europe’s export engine began to sputter.
Why? Because Beijing didn’t build brands — it built an ecosystem.
Chinese manufacturers, leveraging low-cost labor, subsidized energy, and ruthlessly optimized supply chains, created electric vehicles that are not only cheaper — but increasingly competitive in tech, design, and efficiency. And while Washington raised tariffs to block them, Brussels left the gates wide open.
Europe, once the gold standard of automotive prestige, is now on the defensive. Its cost structures are bloated. Supply chains fractured. Policy fractured. The middle-class family car — once a Renault, Peugeot or VW — is fast becoming a BYD or Geely.
Germany sounds alarms. France demands protective tariffs. But the disruption has already happened — not with a bang, but with a billion quietly imported EVs.
Is this the start of a Chinese century on European wheels — or will the EU hit the brakes before it’s too late?