Chinese EVs reshape Australia's car market

Australia's new vehicle sales hit a record high in July, with top-selling Chinese brands helping sustain a second consecutive month in which electric vehicles made up one-fifth of the market, according to latest analysis.

A total of 103,656 new vehicles were delivered in the country last month, surpassing the previous July record of 103,097 units last year, Australia's Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, or FCAI, said in a statement on Aug 5.

Battery EV sales totaled 23,510 units in July, accounting for 21.7 percent of the whole market, it said. BEVs recorded significant growth across the first half of this year, with EV market share rising every month. In June, these vehicles made up 23.3 percent of sales, jumping from 7.6 percent in the same month last year.

Chinese brands accounted for four of the top 10 models by sales volume in the latest FCAI figures, reflecting the major headway made by Chinese EV players in the Australian market.

Carmaker Geely's EX5 model alone recorded sales of 2,034 units in July, compared with 490 units during the same period last year.

Hussein Dia, professor of transport technology and sustainability at the Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, told China Daily that the July figures are significant because they suggest that Australia's EV market is moving into a more established phase.

"One strong month can sometimes be an anomaly, but two consecutive months above one-fifth of the market begin to look like a genuine shift in consumer behavior," Dia said.

"The broader significance is that EVs are becoming part of mainstream vehicle choice rather than a specialist product for early adopters," he said, adding that this is important for Australia's green transition because road transport remains heavily dependent on imported gasoline and diesel.

"Each electric vehicle added to the fleet reduces that exposure over time and increases the role of locally generated electricity, including renewable energy," Dia said.

The role of Chinese manufacturers is difficult to ignore during the process, he said.

"Chinese manufacturers are not simply gaining market share. They are forcing the wider industry to move faster on affordability, battery technology, model choice, and production speed," Dia said.

"Their success reflects several advantages, including competitive pricing, rapid product development, strong battery supply chains, and a growing range of vehicles suited to Australian consumers. In this sense, Chinese manufacturers are not merely participating in Australia's EV transition. They are increasingly helping to set its pace," he said.

Julie Delvecchio, CEO of Australia's Electric Vehicle Council, said the latest figures showed that "Australians are choosing electric, and choosing it more often".

The national EV fleet is now estimated at around 650,000 vehicles, or about 3 percent of all cars on Australian roads, according to the council.

Cost-of-living pressures

Delvecchio said turning to EVs can mean significant savings on fuel and maintenance for Australian households "feeling the cost-of-living squeeze".

Dia from Swinburne University of Technology said cost-of-living pressures are changing how consumers assess vehicles, as buyers are looking "not only at the purchase price, but increasingly at total ownership costs, including fuel, servicing, and maintenance".

He said recent disruptions to international oil supplies have reinforced the risks of depending on volatile global fuel markets and reminded consumers that electricity can be produced locally, while gasoline and diesel remain exposed to events overseas.

alexishooi@chinadaily.com.cn