Focus on Arts and Ecology

 An important environmental story from China, synthesised from local and international media, October 11, 2025

Unauthorised car dealers have been exporting new electric vehicles under “used” labels, often at cut-rate prices, industry insiders told the 21st Century Business Herald. The dealers have been making use of lower taxes for shipping second-hand EVs.

In response, China’s Ministry of Commerce has announced that from January 2026 electric vehicles will require export licences, a system already in place for gasoline and hybrid cars. 

The aim is to standardise car export entities and improve quality control, Inside China reported.

Chinese EV exports grew 160-fold between 2019 and 2023, according to Carbon Brief.

But the boom has been accompanied by “grey export” practices. Labelling new cars as old has helped clear stock in the short term, but has caused price wars, poor after-sales service and reputational damage. Changan Automobile Chairman Zhu Huarong warned in June that such exports are “severely disturbing the market and damaging Chinese brands”.

The new policy restricts export licences to automakers and their authorised distributors, and only for vehicles under their own brands.

Wu Songquan, a senior engineer at the China Automotive Technology & Research Center, told The Paper the policy will “strengthen brand responsibility, improve service quality and curb low-price competition. It will help Chinese EVs achieve long-term global brand growth”.

(Sources: Dialogue Earth)