Surging sales of affordable Chinese electric cars are breaking Japanese automakers’ decades-long grip on south-east Asia, foreshadowing disruption across other regional vehicle markets.
The market share of Japan’s producers, led by Toyota, Honda and Nissan, has fallen to 62 per cent of car sales in south-east Asia’s six biggest markets in the first half of 2025, down from an average of 77 per cent in the 2010s, according to PwC data analysis. China has increased its share from negligible volumes to more than 5 per cent of 3.3mn annual car sales in those markets.
Faced with a brutal price war at home, China’s EV makers have set their sights on exports nearby due to a region-wide free trade deal that grants their cars duty-free market access.