Increasing Number of Chinese Vehicles in Croatia, Led by Tractors and Motorcycles

Since the news broke that the largest Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD has entered the shipping industry to transport its cheap cars to Europe with its own fleet, European manufacturers have become genuinely concerned. Although BYD only started selling in the EU a year ago, they have already made a significant breakthrough in the market, and given their own shipping fleet, this breakthrough will only become more pronounced.

BYD has played a major role in the increasing Chinese export of cars, which amounted to around $12.7 billion by November 2023, and this is only for electric vehicles. Due to the influx of cheap Chinese electric cars, the European Union is announcing additional tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles entering the bloc to protect domestic manufacturers, citing new evidence that the government in Beijing is providing illegal financial support to the industry.

The European Commission recently stated that they have found enough evidence that the import of new electric vehicles from China has received subsidies, including direct transfers of funds, tax breaks, or public provision of goods or services below market prices. As a result, an investigation was launched back in October of last year, and it is likely that new tariffs will be introduced by July of this year.

Chinese Disappointment

In the bloc, there are concerns that domestic manufacturers could suffer from a decline in sales and production if the import of Chinese electric vehicles continues at the same pace as before. As a result, the Commission has instructed customs authorities to begin registering the import of electric vehicles from China so that they can ‘be subject to compensatory duties’.

Due to this stance from the Union, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to the EU has expressed its disappointment with the proposed mandate for customs registration and raised concerns about possible retroactive measures that the European Commission has also announced. They claim that the recent increase in imports reflects the growing demand in Europe. The EU investigation does not name specific manufacturers, but it will focus on all manufacturers in China exporting to the EU, including Tesla and major Chinese brands such as BYD Co., SAIC Motor Corp., and Nio Inc.

If the EU does impose tariffs, it would limit one of the last major markets for Chinese electric vehicle exports, as there are already tariffs of 25 percent on the import of Chinese cars in the USA.

Increasing Number of Registered Cars

In 2022, the number of registered Chinese cars in the EU rose to 455,400, accounting for 4 percent of the market share. From January to September 2023, 462,600 Chinese vehicles were registered (4.8 percent of the market). Looking at the data on motorization, we see that 70.8 percent of Chinese cars registered in Europe between January and September 2023 have electric drive. This amounts to 327,000 cars, representing 22.9 percent of all purchased fully electric vehicles, compared to 324,000 for the entire year of 2022. If we look at the value of Chinese car exports, we see that in 2022 it was 9.37 billion, while in 2023 it rose to 15.95 billion euros.

Chinese in Croatia

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Number of registered vehicles as of March 19, 2024

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—On the home front, 56,697 passenger cars were registered in 2023, a significant increase compared to 2022 when supply chain issues slowed the industry. Regarding Chinese cars, 980 units of the Chinese model MG were registered last year, and first registrations were recorded for Dongfeng (15), Forthing (9), and Geely (3).

However, the number of registered Chinese vehicles is much higher.

As of today (March 19, 2024), according to CVH data, the number of registered Chinese vehicles in Croatia has risen to 22,197 units. Of this, 9,359 are two-wheeled motor vehicles (mopeds), 2,299 are two-wheeled motor vehicles (motorcycles), while exactly 1,301 passenger cars have been registered. Perhaps the most interesting fact is that there are as many as 8,137 registered Chinese tractors.