Chinese state media praises automaker BYD for overtaking Elon Musk's Tesla to become the world's top producer of electric vehicles (EVs), while BYD treats Brazilian workers as 'akin to slavery' He downplays reports that it is placed in the environment.
China's state-owned Global Times on friday reported BYD's production exceeded Tesla's production in 2024, but Tesla still maintains a lead in sales by just under 30,000 units.
BYD sales increased rapidly According to the company's year-end financial statements, Tesla's revenue will increase by 41.3% in 2024, while I slipped Annual sales declined for the first time since 2011, down 1.1%.
Although BYD manufactures cars in multiple countries, the majority of BYD's sales occur in China. BYD is not the only EV maker in China, but it is the largest by a considerable margin.
of Global Times In the fourth quarter, BYD's “deliveries” exceeded Tesla's sales, and BYD's production will increase to 1.778 million vehicles in 2024, surpassing Tesla's 1.77 million vehicles, and for the first time, BYD will surpass Tesla's sales in annual sales. overtook.
“This reveals the increasing competitiveness of China's NEVs.” [new energy vehicles] And it's popularity in the global market is based on technological advances and supply chain advantages,” the Chinese Communist Party newspaper trumpeted.
“NEV” is a Chinese term built This is a broad definition that includes vehicles that obtain most of their energy from electricity, and also includes hybrid vehicles and automobiles. hydrogen fuel cell car (HFCV).
HFCV is currently very rare in the United States, primarily found in California. Users need to fill their vehicles with hydrogen, just as gasoline-powered cars require gasoline, but hydrogen pumps are extremely rare and unlike electric cars, they cannot be charged at home. HFCV is much more popular in China. exceeded South Korea will become the top market for hydrogen vehicles in 2024.
Of course, competitive advantage is Global Times And what the company's analysts don't want to talk about is BYD's habit of keeping employees in near-slavery conditions to cut labor costs. Brazilian government Issuance has been stopped BYD issued work visas to the company last week after hundreds of its imported Chinese workers were found living in unsanitary dormitories and working in “poor” conditions.
Brazilian investigators found that BYD employees were stripped of their passports and forced to give subcontractor Jinjiang Group kickbacks of 60% of their wages, among other abusive practices. Brazilian prosecutors said the workers were victims of “international human trafficking.”
another Global Times report announced on Thursday that Chinese companies now control 70% of global NEV sales, which will jump to 76% of global sales in the final quarter of 2024.
“China's strong performance comes against the backdrop of slowing global NEV growth highlighted by increasing supply of fuel vehicles, depletion of potential EV buyers, and mainstream consumer concerns about charging infrastructure in the EU and US This is in contrast to NEV's lackluster performance in the market, “battery life and insurance costs,'' said Cui Dongxiu, secretary general of the China Passenger Vehicle Association.
“BYD’s sales in December were boosted by the ongoing government vehicle trade-in program, which has benefited China’s domestic and international brands alike. Approximately 2.7 million vehicles were scrapped and replaced nationwide. As of December 19, 3.1 million vehicles had been traded in,” the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said.
of Global Times He cited estimates from the International Energy Agency (IEA) that global electric vehicle sales need to reach 45 million by 2030 to “achieve carbon neutrality.” It would cost more than three times as much the current Annual sales of EVs are approximately 14 million units.
China loves touting its government-backed EV boom as proof that it is acting as a responsible partner on climate change, but the reality is that China remains the world's worst polluter by a wide margin. , especially on environmental issues. combustion Huge amounts of coal for electricity. The global climate movement's criticism of communist China has tended to be very muted, although the level of electric car sales has not come close to offsetting the carbon dioxide China puts into the atmosphere.
