【Text by Observer Net, Editor by Gao Xin】According to data from the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade cited by RIA Novosti, the sales of passenger cars in Russia in January-July 2025 were 646,700 units, a decrease of 24% year-on-year; the sales of trucks in January-July were 31,400 units, a sharp drop of 55%, with the monthly sales in July dropping even more sharply by 61% to 4,400 units;

The Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade also stated that the sales of electric vehicles in Russia in January-July were 6,106 units, a sharp drop of 51% year-on-year.

Additionally, in the first half of this year, 47,000 luxury brand new cars were sold in the Russian market, a sharp drop of 41%; the sales of buses also fell by 52% to 5,900 units.

According to a previous report by Reuters, the largest truck manufacturer in Russia, KAMAZ, announced at the end of July that it would implement a four-day workweek starting August 1, until the market demand recovers. The other two major Russian automotive giants, AvtoVAZ and GAZ, also plan to implement a four-day workweek in August or September to cope with the crisis.

On July 22, Patriarch Kirill of Russia visited the KAMAZ factory. Visual China

KAMAZ also attributed the sharp decline in sales in the first half of the year to the "short-sighted policies" of domestic car importers, accusing them of importing too many cars last year, leading to an oversupply of demand. According to KAMAZ, the current inventory of trucks exceeds 30,000 units, but even at dumping prices, there is no market demand.

In recent years, Chinese car brands have seen rapid growth in the Russian market. In 2024, the number of cars exported to Russia from China reached 1.28 million, setting a historical high.

In the past one or two years, Chinese cars have occupied more than 55% of the market share in Russia, and in the third quarter of 2024, it even exceeded 60%. As a result, the market share of local Russian brands has decreased from 47.4% in 2023 to 33.3% in 2024. Therefore, some Russian local companies and media have expressed criticism towards Chinese cars. For example, Sergey Kogogin, CEO of KAMAZ, said in an internal interview last year that although China has strict regulations domestically, the cars exported to Russia have safety issues.

Last year, the renowned Russian financial media "Kommersant" published an article titled "Russian Taxi Drivers are Unhappy with Chinese Cars," stating that Chinese cars used as taxis in Russia would be scrapped after 150,000 kilometers, while European or South Korean cars could reach 250,000 to 300,000 kilometers. Some fleet operators claimed that 70% of Chinese cars had transmission problems within a short period.

In recent years, the Russian government has also taken multiple measures to restrict the expansion of Chinese cars in the Russian market.

Chinese cars being processed through Russian customs. Visual China

For example, since April 2024, Russia has required vehicles transported through Central Asian countries to Russia to pay various taxes, including tariffs, value-added tax, and consumption tax, to block Chinese cars from being transshipped through Central Asian countries to Russia. In October of the same year, Russia also increased the recycling tax on imported vehicles to 70%-85% up to 2030, increasing by 10%-20% annually.

In February this year, Russian Minister of Industry and Trade Alkhannov criticized three Chinese car brands without naming them, stating that their trucks had serious defects and that "they should not be allowed on the road." He also admitted that the increase in recycling taxes was to "restore balance," as the Chinese automotive industry is actively entering the Russian market and expanding its market share, but "this measure is not enough."

Just recently, on July 30, the Russian Federal Service for Technical Regulation and Metrology prohibited the import and sale of the Dongfeng DFH4180, Foton BJ4189, Jiefang CA4250 and CA4180, and SITRAK ZZHS, as well as the Foton M4L chassis, covering several major Chinese truck brands.

Under the influence of these policies, the number of Chinese cars imported into Russia has shown a clear downward trend. Data from the China Passenger Car Market Information Association (CPCA) shows that in the first half of this year, the number of Chinese cars imported into Russia from outside the country was only 180,000 units, and the number of Chinese cars already in Russia and sold reached 336,000 units, but also fell by 30% compared to the same period last year.

Correspondingly, according to data from the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade, the share of locally produced Russian car brands in total sales in January-July this year increased by 11 percentage points compared to the same period last year; among them, the share of Russian-made electric vehicles in total electric vehicle sales was 27%, an increase of 9 percentage points year-on-year.

Additionally, according to data from the Russian automotive market analysis institution "Avtostat," the share of Chinese car manufacturers in all dealer contracts over the past year decreased by 1.7 percentage points compared to the same period last year; meanwhile, the share of Russian and Belarusian brands rose significantly from 15.6% to 26.3%.

Cui Dongshu, Secretary-General of the CPCA, believes that limiting the transit channels through Central Asia and increasing the recycling tax indicate that Russia's attitude toward Chinese cars is gradually changing: Russia hopes to develop its domestic industry, so it uses tax measures to structurally guide Chinese car companies to establish factories in Russia.

Great Wall Motor Tank brand dealers in Russia. Visual China

However, as of now, only Great Wall Motor has built its own car factory in Tula, Russia. Chery and Jianghuai have instead used Russian local factories to assemble cars.

Cui Dongshu believes that Russia's manufacturing policies have a strong trade protectionist flavor. When there were more important projects to encourage in Europe and the United States, Russia had an adverse impact on Chinese car companies investing in Russia. After Chinese car companies established factories in Russia, there was an uncertain period, needing to worry about similar situations where European and American car companies' assets in Russia could be "zero-cost." Under the current situation of insufficient competitiveness and structural supply shortages in the Russian automotive industry, Chinese car companies need to anticipate changes in the situation early and prevent potential policy risks in the future, prioritizing safety.

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7537204810274112027/

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