Chinese brands are not a major player in Canada's EV market at the moment but imports from China have exploded in the last year as Tesla switched from U.S. factories for its Canadian sales to its manufacturing plant in Shanghai.
Canada currently imposes a six per cent tariff on Chinese-made vehicles, but the cars do qualify for up to $5,000 in federal rebates for EV purchases. And Canada has massively invested in the EV industry, with $30 billion laid out in just the last two years for EV battery and vehicle manufacturing sites for Stellantis, Volkswagen and Honda.
Fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles accounted for almost 11 per cent of total new vehicle registrations in 2023 in Canada, up from eight per cent in 2022. Chinese car brands accounted for four per cent of the EV market share in Europe in 2022, up from less than 0.5 per cent in 2019. An analysis by the European advocacy group Transport & Environment suggests it will reach 11 per cent market share in Europe this year and 20 per cent by 2027.