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In China’s Biggest Cities, One in Five Cars Sold Is Now Electric Source: By Bloomberg News • Posted: Monday, May 10, 2021
Electric and hybrids now account for about one-fifth of new car sales on average in the six biggest Chinese cities, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association.
In some hubs, like Shanghai, that figure is even higher. Around 31% of cars sold in China’s financial heart run on alternative energy, up from 6% in 2016, Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the car trade body wrote in a note over the weekend. In Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou and Tianjin, EV penetration rates are 16%, 13%, 25%, 21% and 12% respectively, higher than 8% nationwide.
But things in China can change fast especially when the central government decides it s time to shake things up. And in the past few weeks, Beijing through state-controlled media has joined the chorus of Tesla critics, and it has the most important and loudest voice of all. Xinhua and People s Daily have been publishing opinion pieces regularly saying that Tesla ignores the rights of consumers, Anne Stevenson-Yang, the founder of the investment firm J Capital Research in China, said in an email to Insider. The violations are said to include a right to transparent pricing and to data about accidents.
All the electric vehicles that stood out at the Shanghai Auto Show
The 19th annual Shanghai Auto Show delivered a bevy of electric and tech-centric vehicles this year. Chinese, European and U.S. automakers showed off their latest offerings in every price segment, from the budget-minded Wuling Hong Guang Mini via a joint venture between SAIC Motor Corp., General Motors Co. and Liuzhou Wuling Motors Co. to the luxury Mercedes EQS and everything in between.
Several automakers touted the capabilities of their driver assistance systems, using terminology that suggested they
could be autonomous if only regulators allowed it. Let’s be clear, these systems are not autonomous. Other automakers stopped short of those claims, but did publicize the software capabilities of their vehicles a movement that has been underway since Tesla rose in popularity.