Another Chery pickup truck is coming to light! The newly registered patent for the exterior design of a new small pickup truck by Chery in multiple countries such as South Africa, Thailand, New Zealand, and the Philippines has been officially revealed. This crossover product built on a unibody chassis will become Chery's entry-level model in the global pickup matrix, coordinating with upcoming models like Stockman, helping Chery break into the global pickup truck market.

According to South African media reports, the Chery headquarters submitted the exterior design patent application for this new pickup truck in multiple countries simultaneously in November 2025, and it was officially approved in early June 2026. It is worth noting that on the day of application, Chery also submitted a patent for a compact SUV with a highly similar design, confirming the connection of these two models being developed on the same platform.

From the design sketches, the new car adopts a dual-row cabin layout, blending SUV's smooth lines with the practical attributes of a pickup. The front face continues Chery's latest family design, square wheel arches are equipped with black scuff protection, and roof rails enhance the crossover style. The car body side adopts hidden door handles on the C-pillar, a support structure extends from above the C-pillar to connect the cargo bed, balancing rigidity and visual effect. Patent documents define it as a "crossover pickup", meaning a fully enclosed passenger cabin paired with an open rear cargo bed. Unlike traditional mid-size pickups, this car has a shorter cargo bed, positioning it as a city lifestyle pickup rather than a pure utility vehicle.

In terms of power, it is expected to be equipped with a 1.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine, front-wheel drive, and future hybrid or plug-in hybrid versions cannot be ruled out. In fact, Chery had revealed plans to launch a half-ton pickup as early as 2021, when it was rumored to be named "TiggoPup", the project was mentioned again during a presentation to South African media in October 2024.

This small crossover pickup will perfect Chery's multi-line pickup product layout. With the launch of Stockman, Chery's pickup product line is formed: Stockman is a mid-size body-on-frame pickup, pure electric pickup KP2X, and full-size pickup KP4X benchmarking the Ford F-150. Jetour brand F700 pickup will also land in Australia by the end of 2027. A multi-brand, multi-positioning product matrix will comprehensively cover various sub-markets from city crossover to hard-core off-road, from fuel to pure electric.

In the South African market, Chery recently acquired the Nissan Rosslyn plant, currently undergoing renovation, planning to start local production in mid-2027, this small pickup is expected to be manufactured in South Africa. Regarding the Australian market, if the new car is introduced, it will be positioned below Stockman, pioneering a new segment of small unibody pickups in Australia. Currently, the Australian market has almost no similar products except the KGM Musso EV, while the hot sales of Ford Maverick in North America have verified the potential of this market.

Chery Australia executives stated earlier: "The global pickup market is not limited to body-on-frame one-ton products." Chery's chief engineer also revealed: "We are developing both body-on-frame and unibody pickups simultaneously, and the success of Ford Maverick gave us inspiration."

In conclusion: Currently, the official launch date for Chery's unibody pickup has not been announced, but with the patent exposure, it is expected that its global debut is not far away, and Chery's global product line will also be further enriched, helping Chinese brands compete with traditional Japanese and American brands in the global pickup market.

On June 21, 2026, on the Shantou East Coast, a car life square facing the sea was unveiled.

This is not only a commercial opening, but also the latest achievement of famous Teochew businessmen Wang Laichun and Wang Laisheng returning home to invest, and also a vivid footnote to the Shantou "Teochew Businessman Returning Home Project".

In this new city transformed from tidal flats, the Ruixun Gulf Car Life Square and the first Chery Life Hall in the country are trying to define an unprecedented new landmark for car culture in Eastern Guangdong

This life hall has completely broken the cold transaction logic of traditional 4S stores "selling immediately upon entry". It has turned the 30,000 square meter seaside space into a full-scenario ecosystem field integrating "people, cars, and life".

Here, viewing cars can be a sea view tour, waiting can be a meal of Chaoshan cuisine, parent-child time can be interwoven with tech study.

Chery Automobile Chairman Yin Tongyue revealed the essence: "What today's users need is not just a good car, but a quality, personalized, and happy lifestyle."

He explicitly stated that this life hall is the largest and most fully-featured benchmark of Chery globally, and the "one city, one hall, one feature" layout will be promoted in the future.

This "stress-free discovery" model has completely broken the circle barriers of car consumption, allowing car culture to move from professional to mass public.

For the 15 million overseas Chinese scattered across the globe, the strategic significance of this life hall far exceeds a leisure consumption venue.

Shantou possesses scarce international submarine cable channels and "data processing" pilots, approved as one of the national first batch of "Digital Bonded Zone" cultivation pilots, serving as the digital bridge connecting China and Southeast Asia. This is naturally the "bridgehead" for Chinese brands going global.

Chery's partnership with Shantou is essentially a strong alliance between "Chinese hardcore products" and "Global Teochew Business Networks".

Chery Life Hall is not only a showroom, but also a "home port" and actual scene model room provided for overseas Chinese and potential dealers — overseas Chinese here not only see cars, but can also see a replicable commercial model carrying Chinese lifestyle and brand value.

Chery's confidence stems from its solid overseas performance record.

In 2025, Chery's export sales reached 1.344 million units, accounting for nearly half of total sales, ranking first in export of Chinese brand passenger cars for 23 consecutive years.

In the Southeast Asian market dominated by Japanese cars for decades, Chinese brands are tearing open a gap with new energy as a weapon.

In January 2026, Chinese brands accounted for over 75% of the pure electric vehicle market share in Thailand, and Chery has even jumped into the top three in brand sales.

In Malaysia, Chery, relying on solid workmanship and highly competitive pricing, saw its market share surge, attracting a large number of consumers who originally considered Japanese cars.

Yin Tongyue once said, Chery's globalization cannot just compete on speed, but must rely on sustainable technical capabilities, with the goal of upgrading from "product going global" to "technology going global".

Now, Yin Tongyue went a step further, he hopes to build the Shantou Life Hall into an "investment promotion platform, going global exchange platform", promoting Chinese automotive technology to "go south to Southeast Asia", towards the world.

This highlights Chery's strategic vision of deeply cultivating Southeast Asia — no longer satisfied with selling cars, but outputting brands and lifestyles. The opening of the Shantou Chery Life Hall is not only a milestone in Chery's channel reform, but also a microcosm of Shantou's urban advancement.

It integrates the advantages of the hometown of overseas Chinese, coastal endowments, and cutting-edge consumption formats, providing an observation sample for the globalization narrative of Chinese brands: true going global is letting brand culture take root in a foreign land, and behind this, is the warmth and strength given by this hot soil of the hometown.

Written by | AUTO Xinqiu

Author | AUTO Xinqiu Team

In the vast family of Chinese automobiles, there is a "non-typical" leading enterprise.

It has ranked first in exports among Chinese brand passenger cars for 23 consecutive years, with almost half of its annual sales sold abroad, recognized as the No. 1 exporter.

You might not know, what is the status of it in the hearts of overseas consumers? On April 23 this year, the International Automotive Quality Expert Group, consisting of the International Automotive Task Force (IATF), International Automotive Oversight Bureau (IAOB), Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG), and Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), followed it, personally visited and presented the "Automotive Industry Peak Award: Quality Innovation Figure" to the chairman of this enterprise.

Not to mention, winning the ICQCC Quality Gold Medal, regarded as the "Olympic" grade of international quality, for three consecutive times, proved its popularity in overseas markets has already "far surpassed" domestic peers.

If the above does not give you a sense, let me tell you, the recently in-the-spotlight Land Rover Freelander's engine is manufactured by it.

Congratulations, you answered correctly! Yes, what I am referring to is Chery Automobile.

So, why is Chery so radiant? What did Chairman Yin Tongyue do right?

"Technology Fanatic" Dual-Drive: R&D Obsession, Honest Collaboration

Yin Tongyue graduated from Hefei University of Technology, known as the "Huangpu Military Academy" of Anhui's automotive industry. After graduating in automotive manufacturing major in 1984, Yin Tongyue directly joined FAW Hongqi Sedan Plant, working as an automotive process engineer. Due to his diligence and outstanding performance, he was quickly identified as core talent and sent to Germany and the US for further study.

After returning to China, Yin Tongyue served as Director of the Final Assembly Workshop and Chief of the Logistics Section at FAW-Volkswagen. He was also awarded the "FAW Top Ten Outstanding Youth" title, with a bright future ahead.

However, a visit and study tour organized by Wuhu City completely changed Yin Tongyue's life trajectory.

At that time, Wuhu City was planning to build an Auto City, and also received strong support from the provincial government. Yin Tongyue, who had already shown his锋芒, was talent scarce in Wuhu City. Thus, the visit group invited him to return home to develop and lead the local auto project. What truly moved Yin Tongyue was a sentence from the visit group: Always working for foreigners is not worthwhile. It was this sentence that ignited his "Dream of Domestic Brand" deep in his heart.

So, he quit and handled the procedures, carrying luggage from Changchun, the Automobile Capital of China, to Wuhu which seemed unrelated to automobiles.

Heaven will assign great responsibility to this person. Yin Tongyue deeply felt the heavy responsibility, only able to exert all efforts and give whole heart.

Chery started from the "Heart of the Automobile", the engine. To ensure this project would be won, Yin Tongyue even made a hardcore commitment: If it failed, I would jump into the Yangtze River.

Possessing this persistence and resilience, he recruited 288 cadres and over 1,000 employees from FAW. It was also with this persistence and resilience that, facing a foreign production line assembly team shirking and slacking, they loudly shouted: "Get back to your home, let us do it ourselves!"

Thus, after 500 days of hard fighting, on April 27, 1999, Chery's first engine successfully rolled off the line, ignited successfully in one try. 7 months later, the first Chery sedan - Fengyun 000001 successfully rolled off the line.

From then on, under Yin Tongyue's leadership, Chery hit models emerged one after another. In 2003, Chery launched the generation mythic car Chery QQ, with annual sales revenue exceeding 8 billion RMB.

How popular was Chery QQ back then? Describing it as a "Phenomenal National Mythic Car" was no exaggeration, because it was the first true "Hit" among Chinese independent brands. Before Chery QQ ceased production in 2014, cumulative sales reached 1.40-1.54 million units, exported to over 100 countries and regions, with cumulative exports exceeding 500,000 units.

In 2013, under a new system and process, Chery created another classic model - Tiggo 5. To strictly control quality, before listing, Yin Tongyue even invited a Japanese expert for acceptance check. This Japanese expert scratched the inside of the car door handle with his fingernail and found a mark, saying: "This is unacceptable."

So without a word, they remade it. During the second inspection, the Japanese expert said the material formula needed re-adjustment and re-certification.

Thus, Yin Tongyue led the team to repeatedly tear down and start over. When Tiggo 5 passed rigorous verification, it also meant Chery bid farewell to the primary stage of "Assembling Parts to Build Cars", and car manufacturing technology and systems truly approached international standards.

Taking engine thermal efficiency as an example, this is a hard indicator measuring core capability of fuel vehicles. Currently, mainstream engine thermal efficiencies mostly range between 38%-45%, while Chery Kunpeng Tiqing Engine achieved 48%. According to Chery internal data, cumulative global installations of its Kunpeng Power Engine Upgraded Version has exceeded 3.1 million units. So, does Made in China fuel engine work? Currently, only Chery dares to pat their chest and say "Yes".

Nowadays, Chery engine thermal efficiency has stabilized at 44.5%, which is top-tier in the industry. With this unique skill, Chery won the favor of two major international luxury car benchmarks, Jaguar and Land Rover. Both parties jointly established a new company, and the new energy vehicle brand "Freelander" directly equipped with Chery's 1.5-Liter Range Extender.

The cooperation with Huawei is a strong alliance. Yin Tongyue has a sentence often mentioned: "When opinions differ, listen to Huawei; when opinions align, listen to Chery." This is not surface-level flattery nor deliberate humility, but a truest respect for technology and the most pragmatic posture of an entrepreneur with an engineer background.

In fact, since Zhijie S7/R7, both sides have been satisfied and mutually appreciative. Why did HarmonyOS Intelligent Mobility select Zhijie V9 as its first MPV? It is precisely due to comprehensive consideration of Chery's manufacturing hard power, a need for deep integration of "Technology Definition + Top Manufacturing".

Firstly, in capacity and quality control aspects, Chery specially created a Super Factory and Brand New Welding Line for Zhijie V9, investing over 20 billion RMB in special funds, capable of delivering this large size MPV and models with high craft requirements with quality and quantity. Secondly, in supply chain cost control, Chery possesses a perfect supply chain system, capable of effectively balancing the high BOM cost brought by Huawei Advanced Smart Driving (such as 896-line LiDAR), supporting V9 being fixed in the 389,800 RMB starting price range, possessing strong market impact.

Global Layout: Not "Sold Out", but "Grown Out"

As early as 1999, Yin Tongyue determined one thing: Chinese automobiles must go out, but not in the way of dumping at cheap prices, but in the way of long-termism.

What was the result? Chery has held the No. 1 position in Chinese brand passenger car exports for 23 consecutive years. In 2025, exports reached 1.344 million units, nearly half of annual sales, cumulative exports exceeding 5.85 million units. More rarely, for Chery exported new energy vehicles, for every 5 sold, 1 is sold to Europe with the strictest regulations, meaning Chery Automobiles' quality is globally top-tier.

Yin Tongyue summarized Chery's globalization philosophy with one sentence: "In somewhere, For somewhere, Be somewhere — Wherever, For Wherever, Become Part of Local." Considering deep integration into local market as the core goal of car exporting.

This is not a slogan. Chery has 10 overseas factories globally. Like Russia, Brazil, Egypt, etc. KD factories achieved "Parts Export, Local Assembly", which both avoids tariffs and drives local employment, deeply welcomed and supported by local governments.

For the extreme cold of Russia and Middle East, Chery strengthened car AC and engine cooling functions; for Brazil and Latin America market, Chery developed flexible fuel engines capable of adding ethanol and gasoline; for Europe market, entering with OMODA, JAECOO New Brands, fully meeting Euro NCAP 5-Star Safety Standard; for Southeast Asia market, Chery developed RHD models using local factories.

Besides, Chery developed multiple modular platforms like T1X, M1X, Mars Architecture, letting products quickly adapt to different countries' regulations, road conditions, and climate.

In April this year, Chery established its first Overseas Regional Operation Center in Barcelona, Spain, and simultaneously launched Spain Research Institute, main focus is Electrification, Smart Mobility and Sustainable Development, with the goal to develop "Cars with More Local Flavor".

In the overseas market, Chery did not consider itself as a "Foreign Manufacturer", but also voluntarily undertook corporate social responsibility for locals. For example, cooperated with World Conservation Union (IUCN), conducted a Mediterranean Posidonia Seagrass Bed Restoration Project, to protect local "Lungs of the Ocean"; Chery also organized local owners in Malaysia, conducted Afforestation Public Welfare Activities, doing all for protecting local ecological environment.

When many companies still "Chase Trends, Make Quick Money", Chery has already built supply chain and layout R&D network overseas for years. This persistence has now finally turned in a shining report card.

Conclusion: Not a Stroke of Genius, but 23 Years of "Hard Work"

What Yin Tongyue did right was never any one "Stroke of Genius", but determined 23 years ago that "Chinese Automobiles Must Go Out", then using Engineer's Rigor, Merchant's Patience, Long-termist's Steadfastness, brick by brick built the "Made in China" reputation into Global Market.

When domestic car companies still race price and configuration, Chery has already completed the transformation from "Cheap Alternative" to "Quality Choice" in overseas market - this is the fundamental reason and confidence of the International Quality Expert Team "Chasing Awards": Not because of what you said, but because in the global market, using over 20 years time, you truly achieved what.

Objectively speaking, Chery Helmsman Yin Tongyue is not only the Top Domestic Car Exporter, but also the Founder and Torchbearer Promoting Chinese Cars to the World, this honor will be written into Chinese Auto Industry Chronicles.

Hope Chery Automobiles Advance Further!

*Images in this article sourced from Internet

Focusing on Smart Cars, Assisting Key Decisions.

At last year's Tokyo Motor Show, BYD launched an all-electric K-Car model for the Japanese market, the BYD RACCO Sea Otter. Now, another Chinese automaker has set its sights on this market. According to reports, Chery recently announced it will enter the Japanese market, and the exterior of its first K-Car model was revealed simultaneously.

It is reported that Chery is entering the Japanese market through a joint venture. Chery will cooperate with four companies to establish a new EV brand, EMTA. The four companies are Jiangsu Yueda, Japanese auto parts manufacturer Autobacs Seven, Chinese battery company Gotion High-Tech, and Japanese machinery company Anest. Chery will provide platforms and drive hardware for the new brand among these.

Unlike the previous BYD situation, Chery's strategy this time is to build a brand new brand and emphasizes a Japanese brand positioning. Therefore, besides the participation of two Japanese companies, technicians from Japanese automakers such as Honda and Mazda were recruited to participate in localized development. The company CMO is Shun Uchiyama, who served at Dongfeng Nissan in the early years. At the same time, EMTA's registration location was chosen to be Singapore, which can be said to help avoid the "Made in China" label, so as to better establish in the Japanese market.

As for the first model, EMTA chose a K-Car model with distinct Japanese characteristics. The vehicle length is 3.4 meters, and it will be developed according to Japanese K-Car specifications. Currently, the new car has not been named, and more parameters are unclear. However, looking at the shareholding structure of the enterprise, we can make some guesses. The new car will adopt Chery's electric drive technology and Gotion High-Tech's batteries. Some technologies might adopt the setting of Chery's pure electric small car QQ Ice Cream. As for the two Japanese companies, Autobacs Seven is responsible for sales business, and Anest is responsible for quality management. The new car is scheduled for delivery in 2027 and will form a product matrix of four models by 2029.

However, the competition in this market is still very huge. Competitors include local hot models such as Honda N-Box, Nissan Sakura, Daihatsu Tanto, and Suzuki Hustler, of course, there is also BYD's Racco Sea Otter. K-Car models occupy one-third of Japan's car sales, and for a long time have been almost entirely occupied by Japanese local manufacturers.

BYD entered the Japanese market in 2023, but penetration progress has been very slow, perhaps this is also one of the reasons why Chery entered this time in the form of a joint venture. But whether it can skip the dilemma currently faced by BYD and achieve better results still needs the market to give the answer. For this new Chery car and the move to enter the Japanese market, we will also continue to follow closely.

May 2026, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers refocused the industry's attention overseas. From January to May, cumulative exports of Chinese automobiles exceeded 4.25 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of over 50%. Annual exports are expected to break through the 10 million mark.

Last year, Chinese automobiles with a total export volume of 7.098 million units (data from CAAM) suppressed Japan for the third consecutive year, reclaiming the global first place, surpassing Japan's historical export record of 6.85 million units set in 1985.

Previously, logos of Toyota, Honda, and Nissan were found everywhere in streets and alleys across Southeast Asia. Suzuki dominated the South Asian market, while Mazda was highly sought after in Europe. Japanese cars relied on a reputation for reliability, fuel efficiency, and value retention to weave a global sales network over the course of four decades.

Now, this network is being torn apart by Chinese carmakers one opening at a time.

BYD, Geely, Chery, three Chinese carmakers with annual sales exceeding 1 million vehicles, are launching a "group charge" in overseas markets. Why these three? Because their internationalization paths are quite representative in different fields: one attacks Europe with strong vertical integration of new energy technology, one weaves a brand matrix through global M&A, and one ground out export volume first through the hard work of building channels overseas for twenty years.

This is no longer a question of "whether China can export", but "among the fleet of Chinese carmakers going overseas, who is the most capable"?

But at the same time, the volume of exports is just one side of a mirror. The final victory in the battlefield lies in: among these three export "giants" BYD, Geely, and Chery, who can be the first to complete the qualitative change from "trade export" to "industrial export" and become a new generation of global car giants? The answer to this question will determine the final move of the Chinese automotive industry in the world map.

# Overseas Markets, Chinese Cars Successively Take Positions #

From importing complete vehicles in the early 21st century to establishing joint ventures in the 2010s, Chinese automobiles went through a long and helpless period of "trading market access for technology". For 30 years, domestic carmakers were technology importers, and reverse exports were basically zero.

But in recent years, this trend is reversing. In 2025, Chinese automobile exports reached 7.098 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 21.1%. Among them, new energy vehicle exports reached 2.615 million vehicles, doubling year-on-year, accounting for about 36.8% of the total export volume; traditional fuel vehicles were 4.483 million vehicles, a decrease of 2% year-on-year. Under the CAAM statistical caliber, in 2025, the share of complete vehicle exports in wholesale exceeded 20% for the first time.

Entering 2026, the export growth rate accelerated further. From January to May 2026, cumulative passenger vehicle exports reached 2.649 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 61.7%. Among them, new energy passenger vehicle exports were 1.732 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 117.3%. The proportion in passenger vehicle exports jumped from about 37% in 2025 to over 65%.

In May alone, new energy passenger vehicle exports reached 424,000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 112.6%, accounting for 54.1% of passenger vehicle exports. For every 10 vehicles exported, more than 5 are electric vehicles. At the same time, the average price per exported vehicle has risen from about 100,000 yuan five years ago to the 300,000 yuan level. Export products are accelerating towards mid-to-high ends.

Except for the growth in volume, Chinese car exports have moved from "single dependence" to "blooming in multiple points".

In 2025, the top ten destinations for Chinese passenger vehicle exports were: Russia (555,400 vehicles, -46.1% YoY), UAE (539,700 vehicles, +74.3%), Mexico (490,800 vehicles, +44.2%), UK (320,800 vehicles, +70.3%), Brazil (299,900 vehicles, +34.6%), Belgium (289,500 vehicles, +4.5%), Saudi Arabia (250,500 vehicles, +11.2%), Australia (246,200 vehicles, +59.3%), Kazakhstan (187,000 vehicles, +74.3%), Iran (164,100 vehicles, -31.6%).

Except for exports to the CIS region dominated by Russia, which declined due to policy and inventory impacts, other regions showed a growth trend: exports to Europe reached 1.51 million vehicles, a 32% increase year-on-year; exports to the Middle East and West Asia reached 1.27 million vehicles, a 48% increase year-on-year; exports to South and Central America reached 1.01 million vehicles, a 49% increase year-on-year; exports to Southeast Asia reached 1.98 million vehicles, a 57% surge year-on-year; exports to Africa reached 800,000 vehicles, a 119% increase year-on-year.

Europe, as a critical breakthrough market, saw Chinese exports to the EU exceed 1 million vehicles for the first time in 2025, reaching 1.0062 million vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 30.7%, with an export value of 13.72 billion euros.

Currently, China is the number one source of automobile imports in the EU region, and also the fifth largest supply source for the European automotive market. In statistics with a broader caliber, it is shown that in 2025, Chinese brand automobiles sales in the European market reached 811,000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 99%, with market share rising to above 7%.

The Middle East, currently arguably one of the important markets for Chinese carmakers to earn high profits. In 2025, Chinese exports to the Middle East region reached 1.4 million vehicles, among which 570,000 in UAE and 300,000 in Saudi Arabia combined contributed over 60% share. The market share of Chinese carmakers in this market has approached 30%. Benefiting from the high unit price market characteristics, the profit margin of Chinese carmakers in this market is significantly higher than in other countries and regions.

The Mexico market in the Latin America region, surpassed Russia last year to become China's largest export country. In 2025, Mexico's cumulative exports reached 625,200 vehicles. Mexico has always been regarded as an important stepping stone for Chinese cars to enter the Americas market, and now has an increasingly higher proportion.

As for Southeast Asia, Japanese carmakers have previously established market barriers belonging to them, but now the entry of Chinese cars is eroding the inherent market share of Japanese cars. Data shows that the market share of Japanese brands in Thailand has dropped from 90% to 70%. The main reason for this data change is the entry of Chinese cars; furthermore, the share of Japanese brands in Indonesia fell below 81%, while Chinese brands reached 14%. Currently, the number of Chinese automobile exports accounts for about 27% of the sales in the Southeast Asian market.

Currently, the overseas expansion of Chinese carmakers is basically concentrated in the top few, such as Chery, SAIC, BYD, Geely, etc. Among them, as representative of private enterprises, BYD, Chery, and Geely actually have different overseas strategies, and also represent three paths of Chinese cars going overseas at present.

# Rivalry of the Three Powers, Who Will Be the Future Overseas Leader? #

Chery is currently the leader in Chinese car exports and also the carmaker with the largest export volume.

In Q1 2026, Chery exported 393,000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 54%, with an export proportion as high as 67%. Such a number means that in Chery's sales structure, overseas sales have exceeded domestic sales, and its average price per vehicle at the export end reached 121,600 yuan, about 14,700 yuan higher than domestic. The performance of the overseas market is directly linked to Chery's profitability.

According to different market regions, Chery's advantage in the European market is quite prominent. From January to April 2026, Chery's export volume in Europe reached 147,000 vehicles, firmly occupying the first tier of Chinese brands. The European market grew year-on-year by over 200% for the full year and has entered 16 countries including the UK and Italy.

In the Middle East market, Chery still took the export top spot with 56,000 vehicles in the first quarter. As for the Southeast Asian market, Chery exported 24,000 vehicles from January to April 2026, a year-on-year increase of 18.2%. Chery's export path is mainly "fuel + hybrid" side-by-side. Among the current exported models, the Tiggo series is very competitive in the Russian and Latin American markets, while OMODA and JAECOO are accelerating penetration into the European market.

BYD ranked second to Chery in export volume in May this year, with a strong potential to surpass. First, look at the data. BYD's overseas sales reached about 1.1 million vehicles in 2025. This year's first quarter exports were about 320,000 vehicles, with an export proportion exceeding 46%. On this basis, BYD has increased its 2026 export target to 1.5 million vehicles, which is the most aggressive target among the three.

BYD's overseas exports not only grew in scale but also optimized in structure. Currently, Brazil is its largest overseas market. From January to April, export volume reached as high as 148,000 vehicles, among which pure electric and plug-in hybrid accounted for almost half each. The European market exported nearly 100,000 vehicles from January to April, a year-on-year increase of 29.7%; the Middle East market exported 26,000 vehicles from January to February; in terms of Southeast Asia, BYD exported 32,000 vehicles from January to April, a year-on-year decrease of 25%.

As for Geely, it is exchanging quality for quantity. If looking at shipment volume alone, Geely cannot compare with Chery and BYD. In May 2026, Geely exported 85,100 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 183.7%; cumulative exports from January to May reached 371,400 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 157.7%. Its export plan for this year is 750,000 vehicles.

But it is worth noting that Geely's average price per overseas vehicle has approached 180,000 yuan, and the export gross profit margin is 9 percentage points higher than domestic. The average price per vehicle in the first quarter reached 118,100 yuan, a year-on-year increase of nearly 15,000 yuan, with growth leading among domestic brands.

In terms of overseas regional distribution, Geely is the most balanced among the three. In the North American Mexico market, it grew over 3 times with 16,000 vehicles; in South America Brazil, it first broke 7,000 vehicles; in Southeast Asia, it firmly occupies the Chinese brand top spot with 46,000 vehicles export volume from January to April leading Chinese brands; in Europe, Geely exported 40,500 vehicles from January to April, a year-on-year increase of 63.6%, and the absolute volume of exports is still rising rapidly.

# Three Paths, Three Strategies? #

Combining the previous content, we will find that these three carmakers represent the three mainstream internationalization models currently domestic, they each have their focus on the overseas path, and the strategies are completely different.

BYD takes the new energy full supply chain overseas route, which is closely related to its brand development path. Currently, its exported models are mainly pure electric and plug-in hybrid, with a price range covering 15,000 to 80,000 Euros.

BYD's logic is very clear: utilize China's full supply chain advantage in the electrification field to quickly seize the overseas market with technological leadership and cost advantage. In the two electrification frontier markets of Europe and Southeast Asia, BYD chose the asset-heavy model of self-built factories plus own channels.

The advantage of this model is strong brand control and complete profit chain. The disadvantages are large investment, long return cycle, and high sensitivity to local policy environments. The electric vehicle tariff policy just implemented in Europe might be the greatest uncertainty BYD faces for a period of time.

Geely takes the multi-brand matrix + overseas brand leveraging route. Through acquiring Volvo, investing in smart, and establishing Polestar as a joint venture, Geely has already possessed a brand matrix spanning Europe, Asia, and the Americas.

This matrix allows Geely to send different brands for different markets. Europe is led by Volvo and Polestar, Southeast Asia by Geely's mother brand and Proton, smart serves as global urban premium EVs, while the Middle East and Latin America are promoted synchronously by Geely's mother brand and Lynk & Co.

This model allows Geely to rapidly enter the high-end market by leveraging Volvo's dealer network, after-sales system, and brand premium, while using the Geely main brand and Lynk & Co to fight for the mainstream market. However, multi-brand synergy itself is a high-difficulty management art. If brand differentiation is unclear, left-hand vs right-hand fighting may occur.

Chery takes the high cost-performance fuel vehicle + wide channel coverage route. Export main force is still fuel SUVs, with a price range concentrated between 12,000 to 25,000 USD.

Chery's advantage lies in its product pricing and developing countries' purchasing power matching highly. These markets like South America, Middle East, Russia, North Africa have imperfect charging infrastructure, consumers are highly sensitive to price, and brand loyalty has not solidified. Chery has almost no direct electrification competitors here.

The export route is the simplest, but also the easiest to replicate. When more Chinese brands bring fuel vehicles of similar high cost-performance to flood these markets, Chery's first-mover advantage will sooner or later be diluted. Chery is trying to open new space with new energy products like Exeed, but from the current situation, the proportion of new energy in Chery's total exports is still far lower than BYD and Geely.

As for these three overseas paths, who can win the future overseas center spot battle, it cannot be easily concluded.

Chery's biggest advantage is the largest export base, difficult to surpass in the short term. But it also has concerns, such as its current export structure, which is highly dependent on the Middle East and Eastern European markets. Once geopolitical or trade policy changes, the impact may come.

Geely's overseas profit level is relatively the highest, and multi-brand differentiation overseas is also the most mature. Its problem lies in whether it can form true confrontation with BYD and Chery in scale. Even if the 2026 export target is increased to 750,000 vehicles, there is still a significant gap compared to BYD's 1.5 million.

BYD has the strongest long-term momentum for overseas expansion because it is not just selling cars, but exporting the standards of the new energy industry chain globally. As long as new factories are built in markets, the cost efficiency advantage of "Made in China" can quickly convert to cost-performance advantage. The uncertainty is BYD's overseas brand recognition. Among mainstream consumer groups in Western Europe, BYD's brand premium has not yet been established. Once trade barriers are encountered, whether BYD can maintain profit levels per vehicle overseas still poses a challenge.

# Overseas Localization Level Determines Future Ranking #

Global largest car exporter, this laurel was previously hanging on the head of the Japanese automotive industry. But from 2023, it finally changed hands, and China surged to become the world's largest car exporter. In the subsequent 2024 and 2025, this status remained firmly in place.

This is a milestone event. At the same time, we also need to clearly recognize that this overseas expansion is just the first step for Chinese cars to go international. And regarding the issue of complete internationalization, there is still a gap compared to Japanese brands.

Why say this? Setting aside the single data of export volume, there are many other data determining whether internationalization is successful. A very important point is overseas capacity.

Through data showing 2025 full year, Chinese carmakers' overseas production was 8 million units. Although this data rose relatively clearly compared to before, looking at Japanese carmakers' overseas capacity, it was as high as 20.4 million units. Although Chinese cars' total volume went up, it was more relied on domestic markets and whole vehicle exports to absorb, far from the complete overseas production system of Japanese carmakers.

So how important is overseas localized production?

A simple example can figure it out. For example, it's the same opening a restaurant. Relying purely on imports requires making food into finished products and transporting them completely to the local place. This involves not only considering transportation quality but also even higher costs. If using locally available ingredients and cooking on site, costs are not only lower, but taste will also be more suitable for local consumers.

The automotive market is the same. Taking Toyota as an example, according to the group's externally announced news, in 2025 Toyota Group's global total sales reached 11.323 million units. Among them, Toyota and Lexus brand Japan domestic sales were 1.5013 million units, overseas sales were 9.0355 million units. If counting all sub-brands like Daihatsu, Hino, etc., overall overseas sales would increase further, overall scale approaching 10 million units, accounting for about 85% of the group's total sales.

It is known that although Toyota currently appeared profit decline, it is still the world's most profitable carmaker without question. A very important point in this is its global localized system ecosystem.

At this stage, most of our independent brands' overseas localization layout is mostly an "extension" of exports. For example, many factories are mainly assembly, core component supply is still exported from domestic to local, and sales networks are also slightly thin. There is still a distance from a complete industry ecosystem.

As for the future, establishing local system ecosystems will naturally be the focus. As for BYD, it has already had three mass production complete vehicle factories in Thailand, Uzbekistan, and Brazil. As for the Hungary factory, it is a key step for BYD to enter Europe. Planned annual capacity 150,000 vehicles. After production starts in Q2 2026, it will achieve zero tariff entry to Europe, cost reduced by 20%-30%. The Indonesia factory also plans to start production in 2026.

BYD's global factory map covers the three core regions of Asia, Europe, and South America. It is the Chinese carmaker with the most active overseas capacity.

Geely has a mature production system overseas. Malaysia's Proton factory has been deeply localized for many years and has launched new energy Proton X70; Belarus BELGEE joint venture CKD factory annual capacity 60,000 units, can directly radiate Russia and Eastern European markets.

Geely is currently investing in Renault Brazil factory. In 2026, Geely brand models are expected to be produced. Factories in Belgium and the UK are more focused on high-end model localization. Geely is not simply newly building capacity but cutting into global layout with existing capacity renovation + equity investment hybrid mode. Cost controllability is stronger.

Chery has established a complete full process and CKD factory matrix overseas. It has four major production bases in Russia; Brazil has two CKD factories with a combined annual capacity of 236,000 vehicles; Spain has an European Industrial Base; Iran, Thailand, and Vietnam also have layouts. Among them, the Vietnam factory claims to be the largest in ASEAN. Chery is also seeking strategic alliances with Renault in Colombia and Argentina to further expand the Latin American market.

BYD invests heavily in new factories to quickly seize zero tariff channels; Geely is good at integrating existing resources to quickly revitalize existing capacity through equity cooperation; Chery relies on early cultivation to form capacity networks in key regions. The three can be said to have their own focuses. Regarding the future, localization speed will determine the sustainability of overseas sales. Currently, it looks like BYD invests the heaviest, determination is greatest; Geely leverages the most, model is most flexible; Chery outlets are densest, but depth needs strengthening.

This Chinese car internationalization competition is not a sprint but a global marathon spanning several years.

Short term, Chery is the champion of current scale. Million-vehicle level export volume, twenty years of overseas deep cultivation, no one can match in the short term; Medium term, growth rate and brand momentum are these two key points. BYD is quickly catching up. The global wave of new energy is its biggest tailwind; Long term, system capability is Geely's advantage. Brand matrix, Volvo's global layout, Proton's Southeast Asian foundation, construct a relatively balanced and risk-resistant globalization system.

Ultimately, who can take the lead depends on a deeper question. Who can truly win hearts after selling to the globe?

Chinese carmakers have proved we can conquer the market with cost and efficiency. But we have not yet fully proved we can conquer users with brands and trust. Toyota's globalization took half a century, Volkswagen's European foundation took decades. Chinese carmakers' overseas expansion has just begun.

In this sense, the competition between BYD, Geely, and Chery is not who defeats who, but who can win a true position for Chinese automobiles in global consumers' minds.

The fundamental victory of Chinese carmakers going overseas is not export volume surpassing Japan. It is when global consumers choose a premium electric car, "Chinese Brand" can sit on equal footing with "Made in Germany" and "Made in Japan". In this critical period of moving from an automotive big power to a powerhouse, for every solid stake Chinese carmakers drive overseas, it means shortening the distance from a big power to a powerhouse.

[Auto Insight Industry] Let's review the major events that happened in the automotive circle on June 9, 2026.

Car Event 1: Chery Responds to Rumors of Cooperation with India's Tata Group

On June 8, the Chery Group issued a clarification statement on its official public account regarding false reports about Chery's cooperation matters. Chery stated that we noticed that recently many media outlets cited foreign media information to interpret the cooperation between Chery and India's Tata Group. While there was no shortage of benevolent concern, it also gave rise to a large number of false speculations. The actual situation is explained as follows:

The cooperation agreement being negotiated between Chery and India's Tata Group is limited to supply of model-related parts, providing them with semi-knocked-down car kits. Chery has no arrangements such as direct investment and technology transfer in the Indian market. The expressions such as "platform transfer", "platform licensing", "technology licensing", "technology export", "technology output" mentioned by some media and accounts are all inconsistent with the facts.

We sincerely thank the sectors of society for their concern and attention to Chery. 

Car Event 2: Saite Technology Announces New Brand Name AIVA

Recently, Saite Technology officially announced the new brand name AIVA, which will realize AI-defined cars. It is a partner that can perceive, think, and empathize, a new life form. The AIVA brand launch event will be held at 19:00 on June 9. The official side also released the first teaser image of the new car.

Previously, ByteDance issued a statement that ByteDance has no plans to build cars or launch an automotive brand. Saite and ByteDance also have no equity cooperation, and Saite is not an automotive brand launched by ByteDance or Doubao. The cooperation between Doubao, Volcano Engine, and automotive industry partners is mainly to provide Doubao large models, smart cockpit and other technical services to industry partners, helping partners improve in-vehicle intelligent interaction experience.

Car Event 3: Yueda Kia May Sales 22,275 Units

Recently, Yueda Kia announced the latest sales data. May 2026 sales were 22,275 units, a 11.4% increase month-over-month and a 0.9% increase year-over-year; cumulative sales from January to May exceeded 90,000 units, showing a steady growth trend overall.

As of now, Yueda Kia has cumulatively exported over 598,000 complete vehicles, with export sales exceeding 6.55 billion US dollars, constructing an export matrix composed of 6 car models including EV5, Sportage, Seltos, K5, Sonet, and Ray. It covers 90 countries and regions worldwide such as Australia, Mexico, Saudi Arabia. Engine exports also achieved remarkable results. In May, 8,474 engines were exported, with cumulative exports exceeding 523,000 units, sold to countries such as Russia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, South Korea, Vietnam, Malaysia, India, Kazakhstan, and Turkey.

Car Event 4: BYD Li Ke Meets with F1/FIA High-Level Officials

Recently, during the F1 Monaco Grand Prix, BYD Vice President Li Ke held talks with F1 Management CEO Stefano Domenicali and FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, and Mohammed Ben Sulayem also posted a photo of the meeting with Li Ke on his personal social platform. Li Ke did not clarify that BYD will establish a brand new F1 team, but hinted that it is exploring all options.

In an interview with foreign media, Li Ke stated, "This is very interesting, because they (FIA President) are also exploring the future and technology very seriously, and they also understand what BYD possesses." In March this year, some media reported first that BYD was assessing the feasibility plan to enter F1 and WEC. In April this year, Li Ke told the media that BYD is conducting substantive negotiations on entering F1. She also stated that F1 is an "excellent opportunity" to test BYD's technical strength, because the new rules for the 2026 season will raise the proportion of power component output in the hybrid system to about 50%, which highly aligns with BYD's core technology.

"Daily Car News", here are the latest car news of the day, please continue to follow "Auto Insight".

The May car sales rankings have been released one by one. The domestic sales landscape is basically set, with little highlights. The most crucial part is the surge in overseas exports. BYD exceeded 160,000 units, closely chasing Chery's 180,000 units. Chery is an old export powerhouse, and is now quickly to be overtaken by BYD.

Thrilling!

Regarding overseas exports, both strategies differ, but looking at this May data alone, Chery temporarily held the throne, but BYD chased very aggressively.

Chery: The Foundation of a 'Veteran'

Chery exported 181,900 units in May, leaving other opponents far behind.

Chery has deepened cultivation in places like Russia, Brazil, and the Middle East for nearly 20 years. Channels and reputation are very solid. It's like running a restaurant; Chery is an old brand with stable repeat customers, and now the taste (product power) has also upgraded, so sales exploded suddenly.

Feature: Fuel cars are the main force and the foundation for making money; new energy is also catching up now.

BYD: The Impact of a 'Rising Star'

BYD exported 160,600 units in May. Although fewer than Chery by over 20,000 units, the growth rate and momentum are stronger.

BYD is the global new energy sales champion, with high brand popularity. Especially in Southeast Asia (Thailand, Singapore) and South America (Brazil), BYD's electric vehicles delivered an overwhelming advantage, grabbing quite a bit of the market.

Feature: All new energy, conforming to future trends, with very strong follow-up power.

Let's look at the May domestic car brand export data. I made a table, it's more intuitive:

Geely this time is worth mentioning separately:

Geely's 85,100 units, although the absolute value hasn't caught up to Chery and BYD yet, the 184% year-on-year growth rate is the highest in the field.

And there is a detail especially worth noting: Geely's exported new energy vehicles in May accounted for 47.9%, almost half were electric cars.

This indicates Geely is not just relying on fuel cars to boost volume overseas; new energy exports have truly taken off. This contrasts with BYD relying mainly on new energy and Chery relying mainly on fuel cars, forming the three main routes for automotive exports currently.

Additionally, Zeekr under Geely delivered 34,377 units in May, with year-on-year growth of 82%. The path of high-end electric car exports went quite smoothly. Lynk & Co 08 EM-P has already launched and delivered in Kazakhstan. Geely's new energy layout overseas is becoming more comprehensive.

Simply summarize the current landscape:

Chery: Total volume No. 1, deep foundation, fuel cars are the baseline

BYD: Total volume No. 2, pure electric and hybrid both strong, momentum fierce

Geely: Growth rate No. 1, highest new energy export ratio, high potential

These three companies' current tactics each have characteristics: Chery plays the 'All-rounder card', BYD plays the 'New Energy card', Geely plays the 'High-end Growth card'. The May export rankings are clear, but who grows faster in the second half, is really hard to say.

And regarding the champion fight, the author believes this battle is not just two car companies fighting, it also represents two export models:

Chery is an 'All-rounder': Grasps both fuel and electric cars, deep foundation in traditional markets. For May, Chery was the undisputed No. 1.

BYD is a 'Specialist Genius': Specializes in new energy, breaking through like bamboo in emerging markets. Although the single month hasn't surpassed Chery yet, adding up January to May, Chery exported 753,000 units. BYD hasn't released cumulative data yet, but based on the single month of 160,000, the total volume gap is rapidly narrowing.

To give an example: This is like a football match. Chery is a traditional strong team, leading all through the first half (past few years), defense is stable; BYD is a rising star with a top striker (EV technology), currently attacking fiercely.

Currently, although Chery leads, the match is far from over. As long as BYD maintains this growth rate, who sits on the 'Number One' seat by the end of this year is really hard to say.

As stated in the title, Chery (Chery) has confirmed it will enter the Japanese market through Electric Mobility Technologies (EMT), the joint venture is registered in Singapore, with participants including Chery, Jiangsu Yueda Group, Autobacs Seven, Gotion High-Tech and Anest among others.

According to media reports, the joint venture will launch a new brand named Emta in Japan. The first model is a pure electric light vehicle, commonly known as a K-Car, expected to officially launch in 2027. Product-wise, the new car will be built based on Chery's vehicle architecture, electric drive system and ADAS driving assistance technology, while the power battery will be supplied by Gotion.

In terms of production, this model is expected to be produced at Yueda's factory located in Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, China. The factory currently also undertakes production tasks for Kia and HiPhi (HiPhi). If the brand subsequently achieves scaled success in the Japanese market, the company does not exclude the possibility of establishing a production base in Japan after 2030. In terms of division of labor, Autobacs Seven will be responsible for sales network construction and channel operations, while Anest will undertake quality and after-sales support systems.

According to the plan, the Emta brand will launch a total of four models for the Japanese market before 2029, with the K-Car being the launch product. Afterwards, it will gradually expand to a series of larger-sized models, including hatchbacks, SUVs and a multi-purpose vehicle with a shape close to an MPV.

From the currently revealed teaser images, the outside world generally believes the first model may be named Emta #01. Regarding design language, the overall contour of the car has some similarity to Chery QQ Ice Cream, but it has been redesigned in details, including a more simplified front face styling, redefined headlight group structure and more miniaturized exterior mirror design, making it better comply with the strict requirements of the Japanese K-Car market for practicality and space efficiency. In terms of body dimensions, the new car is about 3400mm long and 1480mm wide, complying with the typical K-Car regulatory framework.

It is worth noting that this Emta K-Car will directly face competition from multiple local brands in the Japanese domestic market in the future, and will also welcome opponents from the Chinese camp, such as BYD Racco and other same-class small electric vehicle products planned to be launched in Japan by BYD. As multiple parties accelerate layout, the competitive landscape of the Japanese micro electric vehicle market is expected to heat up significantly.

Chery's globalisation strategy has delivered another outstanding result. Data shows that in May, Chery Group exported 181,871 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 80.5%, marking the third consecutive month setting a new record for monthly vehicle exports by Chinese automakers. Among them, new energy vehicle exports grew by 138.8% year-on-year, becoming the main engine for Chery's "going global" strategy.

Looking at the overall performance, from January to May this year, Chery Group cumulatively exported 752,755 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 69.5%, creating a new record for Chinese automakers "exceeding 700,000 vehicles exported within five months", and continuously surpassing the milestones of 140,000, 170,000, and 180,000 vehicles, consistently leading the "going global" of Chinese cars.

The core driving force behind the continuous surge in export volume is Chery's long-established "Green Going Global" strategy. Relying on continuously iterated green technologies, a complete product matrix, and global layout, Chery has successfully converted green competitiveness into global market growth, bringing Chinese cars' "Green Solutions" to the world.

First Sino-European Carbon Footprint Mutual Recognition Certificate: Securing the European "Green Passport"

Green and low-carbon technology is the "passport" for Chinese automakers to enter high-regulation markets. Chery focuses on greening the entire industry chain, from raw materials to recycling throughout the full lifecycle, dedicated to making greenery permeate the entire process of a car from birth to rebirth.

Taking the European best-selling model JAECOO 7 SHS as an example, its full lifecycle carbon footprint is only 120.40 g CO₂e/km, at the leading level of its class. This stems from the model's systematic green technology layout: using approximately 75% low-carbon aluminum to reduce carbon emissions at the material stage, and production factories now use 100% green electricity to reduce carbon emissions at the manufacturing stage.

This all-chain, systematic low-carbon solution allowed Chery to obtain the first Sino-European mutual recognition full lifecycle carbon footprint report among Chinese automakers, and JAECOO 7 SHS received China's first Sino-European carbon footprint mutual recognition certificate.

Figure: JAECOO 7 SHS receiving China's first Sino-European carbon footprint mutual recognition certificate

Recognition in High-End Markets: New Energy Vehicle Sales in Europe Grow by 5.7 Times

With the support of the "Green Pass", Chery's sales have continued to climb in high-regulation markets such as Europe. From January to April, Chery cumulatively sold 107,000 vehicles in 24 European markets where it has already entered, including 53,600 new energy vehicles, a year-on-year surge of 570%. Today, for every 2 cars Chery sells in Europe, 1 is a new energy vehicle.

In the UK, a core European market, Chery has ranked in the top two of new car sales for two consecutive months, among which JAECOO 7 became the best-selling model in the entire UK market across all brands in March, earning recognition in Europe's high-end market.

In Australia, Chery continues to achieve new breakthroughs. Chery has maintained positive sales growth in Australia for 22 consecutive months. In May, OMODA&JAECOO sales increased by 729% year-on-year, ranking at the forefront of the industry; JAECOO J5 ranked second in the pure electric vehicle sales chart, second only to Tesla Model Y.

Multifaceted Efforts to Deepen Global Markets: New Energy Layout Accelerates

While consolidating high-end markets such as Europe, Chery is accelerating the global rollout of new energy products, focusing efforts on key regions such as the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America, comprehensively accelerating the global new energy layout.

In May, iCAR (the overseas brand name) landed in Oman, Indonesia, and South Africa, further expanding the layout of high-end new energy markets in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Africa; Vantec G700 launched in Mexico, accelerating the deepening of the high-end off-road market in Latin America. Meanwhile, Jetour landed in markets such as Poland, Malaysia, Brazil, and South Africa, continuously deepening the global new energy layout. By the end of May, OMODA&JAECOO had entered 70 markets globally. The accelerating new energy global map is bringing Chery's "Green Mobility" solutions to more users worldwide.

Figure: iCAR V27 landed in Oman in May to deepen the high-end new energy market in the Middle East

Figure: iCAR V23 landed in South Africa in May, further perfecting the African regional network

Figure: Vantec G700 carrying out off-road test drive activities locally in Mexico

Continuous product iteration, technology upgrades, and globalisation have enabled Chery's global user base to rise steadily. By the end of May, Chery Group's cumulative global users surpassed 19.62 million, of which overseas cumulative users exceeded 6.59 million. Looking to the future, Chery will persist in green development and green going global, providing greener, safer, and smarter travel products and experiences for users worldwide.