Brussels asks Beijing to voluntarily cut hybrid exports or face safeguard quotas

BYD, Chery, Leapmotor post triple-digit EU growth as Geely leads at 205,000

Sales of fully hybrid cars made in China — vehicles whose petrol or diesel engine charges the motor and battery — rose from 659 in the EU in 2022 to 160,662 in the first seven months of 2026, according to figures reported by The Guardian. Plug-in hybrid sales from China rose from 56,706 to 217,764 over the same January-to-July period, Eurostat figures showed.

The expansion followed the European Commission’s 2024 imposition of anti-subsidy tariffs on fully electric vehicles imported from China. According to The Guardian, the volume of Chinese hybrids on the roads is now “spooking” the car industry and Brussels, which has asked China to voluntarily reduce its hybrid exports to the EU or face safeguards — measures the newspaper said were likely to take the form of quotas.

Hybrid vehicles now account for almost 37% of the overall EU market, with fully electric cars making up just over 21%, according to figures released by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association. The Guardian cited ACEA data showing that three Chinese manufacturers — BYD, Chery and Leapmotor — have made “significant inroads” with triple-digit growth in the EU.

A fourth Chinese firm, Geely, recorded an 8% increase in the first eight months of the year and remained the most popular Chinese brand in the EU, with 205,000 cars sold. Geely’s portfolio includes Sweden’s Volvo and Polestar, which The Guardian described as the EU’s only all-electric car manufacturer. BYD’s sales rose 163% year-on-year, reaching 177,000 units. Both firms, along with a fifth Chinese manufacturer, SAIC, now sit ahead of Tesla, which The Guardian reported sold 142,000 cars across the bloc in the first seven months of the year.

European carmakers continue to dominate the bloc’s volume. The Volkswagen Group sold 2 million cars in the first eight months of the year, according to ACEA figures cited by The Guardian.

Electric-vehicle sales are also growing in parts of Europe. The Guardian reported that German EV sales rose 75% to 69,000 units in August, French sales were up 112%, and Slovenian sales increased 266%. By contrast, the United Kingdom recorded a 27% rise to 28,000 EVs sold in August, and Ireland rose 7% to 2,200 units.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen earlier this month described the bloc’s €1.18 billion-a-day trade deficit with China as having reached an unsustainable “tipping point.” EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and his Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao are scheduled to meet on 8 and 9 October to attempt to build a trade truce.

The Brussels-Beijing talks come as U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping prepare for their third summit in 12 months, scheduled for Thursday in Washington. The Guardian reported that Trump agreed in South Korea last October to drop tariffs on certain Chinese imports in exchange for a suspension of China’s export restrictions on rare earths, materials the newspaper said are critical to the car industry across the U.S., EU and U.K. Some observers believe a deal may not yet have been reached and the suspension may not be announced until the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference next month.