Chinese electric cars recorded record sales in Europe during the first five months of 2026, driven by strong demand, lower tariffs in Britain and increased interest in Italy.
Data from the Schmidt Center for Automotive Research showed that the share of Chinese brands in the Western European battery-electric vehicle market rose to 14.2%, equivalent to one in seven electric vehicles sold, after sales reached approximately 171,800 vehicles, an increase of nearly 5 percentage points compared to the same period in 2025.
This surge comes amid accusations that Chinese automakers are flooding European markets with state-subsidized vehicles to increase their market share, reinforcing calls for import quotas and higher tariffs to protect European manufacturers.
BYD, Chery, SAIC and Xpeng are leading the expansion efforts in Europe, despite the European Union imposing tariffs of up to 35.3% on electric vehicles manufactured by some Chinese companies, in addition to the base tariff of 10%.
The UK is the largest European market for Chinese cars, accounting for about a quarter of Chinese electric car sales in the 18 largest markets in Western Europe, after refusing to impose similar additional tariffs to those imposed by the European Union.
In Italy, which accounted for about one-fifth of Chinese sales, government incentives helped boost demand for low-cost cars, with the price of a Leap Motor T03 reaching as high as 5,000 euros at one point.
Matthias Schmidt, founder of the Schmidt Center for Automotive Research, said that the share of Chinese battery-powered electric vehicles may have peaked, with Chinese companies moving towards plug-in hybrid vehicles, which are not currently subject to the additional European tariffs imposed on fully electric vehicles.
These developments come amid growing pressure on the European Union to extend tariffs to include plug-in hybrid vehicles, in order to protect the European automotive industry from Chinese competition.
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