【By Observer News, Xiong Chaoran】On January 6th local time, the UK's Financial Times reported that since the outbreak of the pandemic, new car sales in the UK have exceeded two million units for the first time, with Chinese brands such as BYD seeing an increase in market share in Europe's second-largest electric vehicle market.

Data released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) on the same day showed that a total of about 2.02 million new cars were registered in the UK last year, a 3.5% increase from 2024, but still below the 2.31 million units in 2019. "This is clearly not a complete recovery," said SMMT Chief Executive Mike Hawes: "If we exclude Chinese brands, the market would not show a growth trend."

The report pointed out that the return of the UK's annual new car sales to the pre-pandemic level of two million units was mainly driven by increased demand for electric vehicles, which now account for 23% of the UK car market. In particular, the rapid rise of Chinese brands has led to a sharp increase in sales of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles - in 2025, the share of Chinese brands in the UK electric vehicle market increased to 12.8%, up from 8.5% in 2024.

On November 25, 2025, Manchester, UK, aerial footage shows electric vehicles charging at the Be.EV operating charging station. IC Photo

Currently, Chinese automakers such as BYD and Chery are actively entering the UK market. Chery sells Omoda and Jaecoo brands in the UK. As the UK has not yet imposed higher import tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles as other parts of Europe have, these Chinese automakers have been able to expand their presence in the UK market.

With more affordable electric vehicles and hybrid models being launched, Chinese brand new car sales in 2025 doubled compared to the previous year, exceeding 196,000 units.

Although Chinese-made electric vehicles and hybrid models are popular, Hawes warned that the outlook for electric vehicle sales growth remains "fragile".

According to SMMT estimates, automakers have provided discounts worth £11,000 per sold electric vehicle, with cumulative costs reaching £5.5 billion.

Under the current system, automakers must ensure that a certain proportion of their annual new car sales are zero-emission vehicles, with the proportion increasing from 28% in 2025 to 33% in 2026, and reaching 80% by 2030. Companies failing to meet the target will face a fine of £15,000 per missing vehicle.

Last December, the share of electric vehicles in the UK rose to 32%, but this was the only month in which electric vehicle sales exceeded the UK government's 2025 target of 28%.

In April last year, the UK government lowered some related targets, including reducing the penalty intensity. Analysts say that due to other flexible arrangements in the system, manufacturers are unlikely to pay fines for not meeting the targets last year.

However, SMMT has called on the UK government to bring forward the planned review of the country's "zero-emission vehicle mandate", hoping to complete it this year instead of early 2027.

In recent years, Chinese automobile manufacturers have continuously set new records. In 2023, China's auto exports surpassed Japan for the first time, ranking first globally. In the past year, Chinese automakers have achieved another milestone.

The Japanese newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun published an article on December 30th last year, predicting that Chinese automakers are expected to take the top position in global new car sales for the first time in 2025, pushing Japanese manufacturers, who have held the top spot for over 20 years, to second place.

Additionally, on January 1st this year, Chinese automaker BYD announced its 2025 sales data. The data showed that BYD delivered 4.6 million vehicles in 2025, an increase of 7.7% from 2024. Among them, electric vehicle sales grew by 28% to 2.25 million units.

Nikkei Asia stated that Tesla has not yet released full-year electric vehicle sales, but a market estimate released on December 29th last year showed that its sales fell by 8% in 2025 to 1.64 million units. This means that BYD is expected to surpass Tesla for the first time in annual electric vehicle sales, becoming the world's largest electric vehicle seller. In 2024, Tesla barely retained the top position with just 20,000 units sold.

Bloomberg also said that in 2025, BYD is likely to achieve its annual sales target, possibly surpassing Tesla to become the world's largest electric vehicle manufacturer.

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Original: toutiao.com/article/7592157588628816426/

Statement: The article represents the personal views of the author.