Nearly half of new cars launched in the world are for China

The world's busiest automaker in the second quarter was Toyota, with seven products introduced to the public. These include the 4th generation Tacoma pickup for the North American market, and the Yaris Cross for Southeast Asia . Lexus - Toyota's luxury brand - launched the second-generation LM minivan for the Asian and European markets, the LBX as well as the TX and GX. The latest, Toyota Alphard has just launched this week .

The American company, General Motors, also has five new models, with three of them for China and two for Mexico. The Chinese automaker, Geely, with many sub-brands, has four products from Geely, Lynk & Co, Polestar and Volvo. Truong Thanh also has a new car.

Also of the total number of new cars launched, SUVs account for more than half. Other segments are almost equal and much worse. Specifically, 25 SUV models, 5 sedans, 5 hatchbacks, 3 MPVs, 2 wagons, 2 pickups and a sports car were introduced to global customers.

My Anh (according to Motor1 )

A series of Chinese cars to be sold in Vietnam 2023
Vietnamese customers have more options for electric cars with the cheapest prices in the market such as Zhidou A01, Wuling Hongguang or petrol cars of brands such as Haima, Omoda, Jaecoo.  168

More than 90 electric SUV models are on sale in China
The fiercest battle in the Chinese electric vehicle market is taking place in the SUV segment, where customers have more than 90 options. 

China - where customers have 100 car brands to choose from
China has nearly 100 auto brands from 40 corporations, of which 58% are less than 10 years old.  100

After the global economic crisis of 2008-2011 and then the European crises in the period of 2010-2013, the auto industry saw a significant number of brands leave one after another.

The crises hit sales directly and caused the market to shrink in volume. Many automakers are forced to abandon weaker brands in search of growth.

General Motors (GM) may be the manufacturer most affected. In the late 1990s, its portfolio consisted of nine different brands. Now there are only 4 left.

Yangwang U8 electric SUV at the Shanghai auto show. Yangwang is a sub-brand of BYD, and just launched in 2023. Photo: CNBC

Chrysler and Ford have also dropped a number of sub-brands over the past 20 years, such as Plymouth, Eagle and Mercury. In Europe, brands like Rover and Saab have also disappeared, while others like Lancia from the brand are just a model name.

Meanwhile, in China, the context is contrast. In the early years of this century, the Chinese market only had about 25 car brands. At that time, the East Asian country mainly produced products that imitated European and Japanese cars and sold to domestic customers. Between 2001-2010, 14 more brands appeared.

As demand continues to grow and Chinese customers' incomes are higher, the industry is starting to launch more models from new brands. Between 2011-2015, a total of 12 new brands entered the domestic market: Maxus, Beijing Auto, VGV, Haval, Xpeng, Nio, Cowin (now Kaiyi), Hozon, Leap Motor, Weltmeister, Enovate and Li Auto.

The entry of electric vehicles and their popularity, coupled with strong government commitment, led to a proliferation of new brands. Since 2016, there have been 50 new car manufacturers in this region, allowing Chinese customers to choose to buy cars from a total of 99 different brands. But because of that, China's auto industry is both big and very young: 58 percent of them are less than 10 years old.

Press conference to launch new car of Zeekr - a sub-brand of Geely - at the Shanghai auto show 2023. Zeekr was just established in 2021. Photo: Zeekr

Every year, the East Asian market consumes about 25 million cars. In 2022, China accounts for nearly 32% of global vehicle sales, or as many sales as the US, India, Japan and Germany combined.

So there are many opportunities for everyone. For this reason, the strategy - like the US market scene of the 1970s and 1980s - is to expand the supply by launching more models shared with other brands and more diverse positioning. Today 99 brands belong to about 40 auto groups. However, not all are successful. In recent years, some brands have had to withdraw because of low sales.

The dynamism of the Chinese auto market is also a special feature. Huge domestic demand, strong government support, and commitment to developing electric vehicles are the perfect scenario for launching new brands. Six brands have entered the market this year alone, with three more expected to appear by the end of the year.

Europe, America, Japan, Korea do not have the same story. In fact, in the past eight years, only a handful of brands have been established or survived.