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Daniel Ren

International luxury car brands from Mercedes-Benz to Land Rover took a further beating in China last month as wealthy consumers continued to shun expensive petrol-powered vehicles.
Struggling against competition from China’s rising electric vehicle (EV) powerhouses, international marques would find it more difficult to retain their market share and maintain profitability in the world’s largest automotive market, analysts said.
According to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), luxury auto brands reported sales of 162,224 vehicles last month, down 29.5 per cent from the same period in 2025.
The luxury category includes only two indigenous EV brands, BYD’s Yangwang and JAC Group’s Maextro. Most of the more than 10 other marques are international brands, including BMW, Jaguar and Infiniti, that offer only petrol cars in the mainland market.
“The luxury segment was believed to be international brands’ stronghold, as more low-priced electric cars developed by Chinese companies showed an upper hand in the mass market,” said Zhao Zhen, a sales director at Shanghai dealer Wan Zhuo Auto. “The downward trend is set to continue amid consumers’ waning demand for premium cars and increasing penchant for EVs due to rising crude oil prices.”
CPCA data showed that luxury car deliveries during the first half slumped 17.9 per cent year on year to 967,929 units.
In the three months ending June, luxury cars accounted for 10.2 per cent of total new vehicle sales on the mainland, compared with 12 per cent in 2024 and 10.2 per cent last year, it added.
Two decades ago, established conventional carmakers such as Volkswagen and Toyota held more than 80 per cent of the Chinese car market, as vehicles assembled locally through joint ventures proved far superior to indigenous models. But they have been eclipsed by Chinese EV assemblers including BYD and Leapmotor since 2023 due to their slow transition into EVs.

From January to June, deliveries of EVs, comprising pure electric and plug-in hybrid cars, jumped 14 per cent year on year to 4.7 million units, representing 54 per cent of the country’s total, CPCA data showed.
Battered by worries about their job prospects and income, most well-to-do and middle-income consumers in China have been cautious on purchases of big-ticket items, said Eric Han, a senior ­manager at Shanghai consultancy Suolei.
At the end of June, global consultancy AlixPartners predicted overall sales of light vehicles – passenger cars and pickups – in China would slump 10 per cent year on year to 24.6 million units in 2026, owing to a shaky economy and softening government support.
UBS predicted in an earlier report that diminished demand for foreign-branded cars would lead to an excess capacity of 10 million vehicles in the future, though it did not provide a clear time frame.


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Mercedes, Land Rover, BMW, Jaguar and Infiniti take further hit as consumers shun pricey, petrol-powered vehicles


Mercedes, Land Rover, BMW, Jaguar and Infiniti take further hit as consumers shun pricey, petrol-powered vehicles.


Foreign carmakers lose more traction in China as luxury stronghold erodes

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Mercedes, Land Rover, BMW, Jaguar and Infiniti take further hit as consumers shun pricey, petrol-powered vehicles

Mercedes, Land Rover, BMW, Jaguar and Infiniti take further hit as consumers shun pricey, petrol-powered vehicles