Chinese electric vehicle(EV)makers invested a total of$16 billion in overseas market in 2024,surpassing the$15 billion investment at home for the first time,according to a report released by research firm Rhodium Group on Monday.
Chinese electric vehicle companies invested$16 billion overseas in 2024,surpassing the$15 billion domestic spending for the first time,according to a report released by research firm Rhodium Group on August 18,2025.Photo:screenshot of Rhodium Group report
The figure marks a"historic shift"in China's EV industry's globalization strategy,as nearly 80 percent of the past investments had focused on the domestic market,the report said.
"The fact that overseas investments now outpace domestic ones reflects a saturated Chinese market,and the strategic appeal of expanding abroad for higher returns,"said Armand Meyer,senior research analyst at Rhodium and one of the authors of the report,Bloomberg reported.
Chinese outbound investment in the zero-emission vehicle(ZEV)supply chain has largely concentrated on batteries.Battery projects accounted for 69 percent of domestic investment in 2024,reflecting the capital-intensive nature of battery manufacturing.The share was even higher overseas,where batteries made up 74 percent of total investment,as Chinese battery makers were among the earliest to expand abroad,the research report revealed.
CATL's$2 billion battery plant in Germany in 2018 marked the first major overseas step by a Chinese player in the ZEV sector.Battery giants such as CATL,Envision,and Gotion followed clients like Tesla and BMW abroad,motivated by high transport costs and demand for localized supply.
In June,CATL made clear that it has made overseas expansion one of its priorities,citing fierce competition in China's domestic auto market as a factor that could affect the industry's healthy development.
Though Chinese automakers were slower to expand production overseas as the Rhodium report said,they are now accelerating their global footprint.
BYD has established factories in Brazil and Thailand and is planning new facilities in Turkey and Indonesia,while Chery Automobile has committed to investing$1 billion in an EV plant in Turkey.
Changan Automobile's plant in Rayong,Thailand,was inaugurated on May 16,with the company's 28.59 millionth vehicle rolling off the assembly line that day,Xinhua News Agency reported earlier.As Changan's first overseas assembly facility,the plant represents a total investment of about 10 billion baht($300 million).Phase I has an annual capacity of 100,000 vehicles,which will be expanded to 200,000 later.
"Right now,more Chinese automakers—especially in the NEV sector—and parts makers too are accelerating their global expansion,"Cui Dongshu,secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association,told Global Times.
"Unlike traditional auto manufacturing,the EV battery industry developed as an independent ecosystem,with much of its production also serving storage and consumer electronics.Against the backdrop of the global green transition,batteries have gained massive opportunities not just in autos,but also in energy storage and 3C electronics,"Cui noted.
Cui pointed out that Western economies lack China's upstream ecosystem of highly dynamic private enterprises in the electronics field."In cathode materials,anodes,electrolytes and other key segments,Chinese private firms have already built strong competitiveness,"he said."These companies are eager to scale up globally,and overseas investment has become a natural extension of their drive for growth and innovation."
According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers,China exported 3.083 million vehicles in the first half of 2025,up 10.4 percent year-on-year.Despite persistent global uncertainties,the growth underscores the growing competitiveness of Chinese cars in the international market,experts said.
