Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:
Chinese electric vehicle brands expand to global markets
(1/2)
McDonald reported from Shanghai; Joe Mcdonald And Yuri
Kageyama, The Associated Press
Tue, May 2, 2023 at 5:55 a.m. GMT+1
YOKOHAMA, Japan (AP) — Osamu Furukawa has driven lots of
Japanese cars for his business converting classic gasoline-powered models to
electric. But his favorite ride is an import: A battery-powered SUV from
China’s BYD Auto.
BYD Auto is part of a wave of Chinese electric car exporters that are starting to compete with Western and Japanese brands in their home markets. They bring fast-developing technology and low prices that Tesla Inc.'s chief financial officer says “are scary.”
Furukawa said he ordered an ATTO 3 when it went on sale Jan. 31, for its user-friendly features and appealing price of 4.4 million yen ($33,000) — or about one-quarter less than a Tesla.
“It’s perfect,” Furukawa said in his office in Yokohama, southwest of Tokyo.
Other ambitious Chinese EV exporters include NIO, Geely Group’s Zeekr and Ora, a unit of SUV maker Great Wall Motors.
Some compete on price. Others emphasize performance and features, putting pressure on Western and Japanese premium brands.
NIO Inc., which has persuaded buyers in China to pay Tesla-level sticker prices of up to 555,000 yuan ($80,000), says its latest SUV goes on sale this year in Europe. The ES6 boasts voice-activated controls and a range of 610 kilometers (380 miles) on a charge.
“We are very confident the ES6 will compete in this premium SUV market,” NIO’s founder and CEO, William Li, said in an interview at the Shanghai auto show.
Sales of battery-powered vehicles and gasoline-electric hybrids in China almost doubled last year to 6.9 million vehicles, or half the global total.
That was supported by multibillion-dollar subsidies from the ruling Communist Party, which is trying to make China a creator of clean energy and other technologies. That rattles U.S. and European leaders who see China as a strategic and industrial competitor.
Chinese brands are “serious competition,” according to David Leah, an analyst for GlobalData.
They have “more competitive battery technology” and can “achieve greater economies of scale,” Leah said in an email.
BYD Auto, owned by battery maker BYD Co., edged ahead of Tesla in total 2022 sales at 1.9 million vehicles. Half were gasoline-electric hybrids, while Tesla’s fleet is pure electric.
“We have a lot of respect for the car companies in China,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in a Jan. 25 conference call with financial analysts. “They work the hardest and they work the smartest.”
Chinese brands are developing EVs to compete without subsidies as Beijing shifts the burden to the industry by requiring them to earn credits for selling electrics. Prices start as low as 100,000 yuan ($14,500) for a compact SUV with a 400-kilometer (250-mile) range on one charge.
“The Chinese are scary,” Tesla CFO Zachary Kirkhorn said on the analyst call.
Chinese EV brands mix research and design centers in the United States and Europe with factories in China.
Geely’s Zeekr plans to launch an all-electric sedan and an SUV this year in the Netherlands and Sweden. Its mini-United Nations of Chinese and European designers is in Gothenberg, Sweden, adjacent to Volvo Cars, another Geely brand, while its factories are in China.
“Our ambition is to be a key player in electrified mobility in Europe within this decade,” said Zeekr CEO Spiros Fotinos, a Toyota and Lexus veteran. With a “clear global ambition,” he said, "we’re looking at the opportunities and right timing for other markets.”
(to be continued)
Translation
日本橫濱（美聯社）- Osamu Furukawa 駕駛過許多日本汽車，業務上將傳統汽油動力車型改裝為電動車型。 但他最喜歡的車是進口車：來自中國比亞迪汽車的電池驅動 SUV。
比亞迪汽車是中國電動汽車出口商浪潮中的一員，這些出口商開始在本土市場與西方和日本品牌展開競爭。 他們帶來了Tesla Inc.首席財務官所說的 “令人恐懼” 的快速發展技術和低廉價格。
Furukawa 說，他在 1 月 31 日發售時訂購了 ATTO 3，因為它具有方便使用的功能和 440 萬日元（33,000 美元）的誘人價格 - 比Tesla 低四分之一左右。
Furukawa在他位於東京西南部橫濱的辦公室裡說: “太完美了” 。
其他雄心勃勃的中國電動汽車出口商包括 NIO、吉利集團的 Zeekr 和 SUV 製造商長城汽車的子公司 Ora。
有些在價格上競爭。 其他人強調性能和功能，給西方和日本的高端品牌帶來壓力。
NIO Inc.稱其最新款 SUV 將於今年在歐洲上市銷售, 在中國它們已說服買家支付高達 555,000 元人民幣（80,000 美元）的 Tesla 級別廠方標價。 ES6 擁有聲控功能，一次充電可行駛 610 公里（380 英里）。
NIO 創始人兼首席執行官 William Li 在上海車展上接受採訪時表示: “我們非常有信心 ES6 將在這個高端 SUV 市場展開競爭” 。
去年，中國電動汽車和油電混合動力汽車的銷量幾乎翻了一番，達到 690 萬輛，佔全球總銷量的一半。
這得到了執政共產黨的數十億美元補貼的支持，該黨正努力使中國成為清潔能源和其他技術的創造者。 這讓將視中國為戰略和工業競爭對手的美國和歐洲領導人感到不安。
GlobalData 的分析師 David Leah 表示，中國品牌是 “認真的競爭” 。
Leah 在一封電子郵件中說，他們擁有 “更具競爭力的電池技術” ，可以“實現更大的規模經濟効益”。
電池製造商比亞迪公司旗下的比亞迪汽車在 2022 年的總銷量為 190 萬輛，領先於Tesla。 一半是油電混合動力車，而Tesla的車隊是純電動的。
Tesla首席執行官馬斯克在 1 月 25 日與金融分析師的電話會議上表示: “我們非常尊重中國的汽車公司” 。 “他們工作得最努力，他們工作得最高明。”
中國品牌正在開發電動汽車以在沒有補貼的情況下參與競爭，因為北京要求他們動用銷售電動汽車獲得收益, 以轉嫁負擔回到該行業。 一次充電可行駛 400 公里（250 英里）的袖珍型 SUV 起價低至 10 萬元人民幣（14,500 美元）。
Tesla首席財務官 Zachary Kirkhorn 在分析師電話會議上說: “中國人很可怕” 。
中國電動汽車品牌將美國和歐洲的研究和設計中心與中國的工廠結合在一起。
吉利的 Zeekr 計劃今年在荷蘭和瑞典推出一款全電動轎車和一款 SUV。 它的中國加歐洲設計師迷你聯合國位於瑞典哥德堡，毗鄰吉利的另一個品牌Volvo汽車，而其工廠則在中國。
曾在豐田和Lexus工作過的 Zeekr 首席執行官
Spiros Fotinos 說: “我們的目標是在這十年內成為歐洲電動汽車的主要參與者”
。 他帶著 “明確的全球野心” 說， “我們正在尋找其他市場的機會和合適的時機。”
（待續）
沒有留言:
張貼留言