A Chinese-made truck waits to be loaded onto a ship for export at Yantai port in Shandong province, China, April 20, 2026.
Photo | Future Publishing | Getty Images
Hello, I’m Evelyn. I am writing to you from Beijing. Welcome to the latest edition of The China Connection. This is a snapshot of what I’ve seen and heard from local businesses.
China is not resting on its laurels of success with electric vehicles. From new policy goals to exports, what is about to accelerate?
big story
China plans to repeat its electric car success story, this time with trucks.
Overseas buyers who bought about 880 electric trucks this year put pressure on Chinese manufacturers as transportation and oil costs rose. sunny According to Michael Yue, overseas market general manager of Sany Heavy Industries’ electric truck division, all vehicles are scheduled to be shipped by the end of June.
Yue said last week that before the Iran war, widespread adoption of electric trucks overseas was expected to take three to five years. “But now they need it right away.”
Our conversation came just days after China’s Ministry of Transport called for new energy heavy trucks to account for 40% of new vehicle sales by 2030. More than 80% of trucks used on short-haul routes around Beijing should be electric vehicles, the policy added.
This goal reflects China’s push to develop new energy passenger vehicles, including battery-powered and hybrid models, for more than a decade. The goal was for NEVs to account for 20% of new passenger car sales by 2025.
China far exceeded that standard.
By 2024, more than half of new passenger cars sold in China will be NEVs. That number has since climbed above 60%, and BYD Executive Vice President Stella Li recently predicted it could soon reach 80%.
Electric trucks are following a similar trajectory. About a quarter of trucks sold in China last year were electric vehicles, according to the International Energy Agency, with global sales in the sector doubling to more than 400,000. The IEA attributes much of China’s growth to “operating cost advantages and falling battery costs.”
The IEA said in a report released in May that the total cost of owning a battery-powered heavy goods truck in China over a five-year period has in some cases reached parity with diesel alternatives.
However, outside China, electric trucks still cost at least twice as much as diesel engine models, according to the IEA.
global competition
This gap helps explain why adoption remains relatively limited around the world, even as auto giants and startups race to enter the market.
tesla plans to increase deliveries of “semi” trucks this year. Mercedes-Benz announced its electric long-distance truck “eActros 600” in 2023, but it is still focused on promoting the vehicle this year.
Sany has focused on excavators and construction equipment for decades, but only expanded into electric vehicles five years ago, Yue said. He said the company has since stopped selling diesel trucks in China.
The company claims that the 880-vehicle order represents the largest electric truck export shipment from China to date.
Mr. Yue declined to identify customers or destination countries due to confidentiality agreements, but said Sanyi has previously shipped electric trucks to countries such as Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates.
Like Xiaomi and other Chinese power companies that have increasingly relied on factory automation to cut costs and expand production, Sany is building much of its manufacturing capacity in-house.
In fact, the first phase of the highly automated factory in Changsha can already produce up to 300,000 trucks a year using Chinese-made parts, Yue said. He claimed that the plant is the second largest commercial truck factory in the world after Europe’s BMW.
Sany already has operations in Asia, the Americas, Europe and Africa. More than 60% of last year’s total revenue of 89.7 billion yuan came from outside China.
“The company’s factories in Indonesia have been producing products that reach high-end markets in Europe and the United States,” Sany said in its 2025 annual report. The company declined to comment on reports that it plans to list its electric truck business in Hong Kong.
Jing Yan, director of Asia-Pacific corporate ratings at Fitch Ratings, said electric trucks make up a small portion of China’s truck exports but are rapidly expanding. “The sector grew rapidly in 2025 and the first four months of 2026, and Fitch expects this strong momentum to continue.”
If this prediction holds true, electric trucks could join cars and semiconductors in supporting China’s global exports despite higher tariffs as Beijing builds out a new industry led by the government.
need to know
China’s retail sales fall for the first time in three years
According to official data for May, retail sales unexpectedly fell by 0.6% year-on-year, and investment fell more than expected. Industrial production exceeded expectations, increasing by 4.5%.
China promotes AI safety as G7 summit concludes without China
China’s top diplomat Wang Yi said the country is accelerating plans to establish a global AI cooperation organization. He was speaking at the launch of China’s Global Governance White Paper, which criticized the trade war and emphasized support for the Global South.
China’s securities regulator warns against speculation based on ‘high-tech hype’ and use of AI for stock selection
Wu Qing, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, said Wednesday at the annual Lujiazui Forum in Shanghai that regulators will “severely investigate and punish” illegal activities.
very soon
June 22-26: China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE) will be held in Beijing
June 23rd-25th: World Economic Forum “Summer Davos” held in Dalian
June 27: May industrial profits
June 30: China’s official PMI for June
