1. August Export Records — Commercial Vehicles Cross 94,000 Units
According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), China's automotive sector set a fresh monthly export record in August 2025 with 763,300 vehicles shipped overseas, up 10.0% month-on-month. Within that total:
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Passenger vehicles: 669,300 units (+11.7% MoM)
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Commercial vehicles: 94,000 units (–0.3% YoY, –0.36% MoM) — generating export value of RMB 20.116 billion in the month
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January–August 2025 cumulative auto exports: 4.93 million units (double-digit YoY growth)
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January–August commercial vehicle exports: 714,100 units (+23.77% YoY cumulative), export value RMB 150.734 billion; of which trucks 642,600 (+22.85%) and buses 71,500 (+32.78%)
Top 5 export source provinces (Jan–Aug): Shandong, Chongqing, Beijing, Anhui, Hebei.
Top 5 export markets (Jan–Aug): Mexico, Vietnam, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Chile.
Top 5 markets in August: Vietnam, Mexico, Australia, Ecuador, Argentina.
Belt and Road highlight: Jan–Aug automotive goods exports reached USD 89.32 billion (+13.7%); complete vehicles 3.313 million units (+21.4%); NEVs 1.053 million units (+75.0%).
2. Domestic Market — NEV Commercial Vehicles Penetration Tops 27%
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August commercial vehicle production 315,000 units, sales 316,000 units (+5.9% / +3.4% MoM, both +16%+ YoY)
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Heavy-truck sales 92,000 units (+46.7% YoY); trucks total 272,000 (+17.1%); buses 45,000 (+11.6%)
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CNG/LNG commercial vehicles: August sales exceeded 20,000 units (+26.5% MoM, +23.3% YoY)
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NEV commercial vehicles: August domestic sales 66,000 units (+58.6% YoY, penetration 27.6%); Jan–Aug cumulative 481,000 units (+59%, penetration 23%)
3. OEM Export Snapshot — Foton / BYD / Chery / JAC
Foton (福田) — sustained No.1 in China commercial-vehicle exports for 15 consecutive years; cumulative overseas sales surpassed 1.25 million units, covering 140+ countries with 1,200+ sales points and 1,500+ service centers, plus 32 overseas KD plants. 2025 overseas sales 164,500 units (+7.2% YoY); NEV sales 101,200 units (+87.21%); heavy-truck sales 142,000 units (+103.6%). January–February 2026 overseas deliveries exceeded 30,000 units (+27.8% YoY). New moves: launched a joint RoRo vessel company "Guangzhou Yuanfu Auto Supply Chain" with COSCO Shipping Special Transport on March 26, 2026; rolled out the global pure-electric light-truck platform "Qiming Star" (启明星) with RMB 1.7 billion investment, 140 kW SiC oil-cooled flat-wire motor.
BYD (比亚迪) — January–July 2026 overseas sales approximately 970,000 units; July overseas 180,500 units (+123.6% YoY), export ratio 43.1%. Japan breakthrough: RACCO model orders surpassed 1,002 units within two weeks of launch. NEV penetration in commercial-vehicle mix continues to climb globally.
Chery (奇瑞) — January–July 2026 cumulative exports 1,146,350 units (+71.2% YoY), the first Chinese automaker past the 1.1M YTD threshold. Europe (24 markets) up +212% YoY; global cumulative users exceeded 20.16 million, overseas users exceeded 6.99 million. July export 202,533 units (+70.1%).
JAC (江淮) — July total sales 28,605 units (+13.53% YoY); Jan–July 200,991 units (–6.87% YoY). NEV passenger cars July 1,277 units (–33.66% YoY); pickup export momentum remains strong with multi-week +70% growth.
4. Electric Drive Axle — From Optional to Default
Penetration of e-axles in electric heavy trucks is currently below 5%, but the industry consensus projects e-axle penetration to exceed 20% in 2026, transforming the architecture from "optional" to "default." Three technology routes coexist — central direct drive, e-axle, and distributed drive — but the integrated e-axle is gaining clear momentum in long-haul and logistics scenarios.
Key product wave:
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Hande Axle (汉德车桥) — cumulative e-axle sales surpassed 100,000 units by April 2025 (3× the combined total of global competitors). Industry-first 800 V + SiC e-axle; HDE13t oil-cooled multi-speed e-axle with dual-gear design.
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Lvduanyishi (零一汽车) Jushi 2.0 "four-in-one" integrated e-axle — combines motor, gearbox, axle housing and PTO; over 150 kg weight reduction; system efficiency 94% (2%+ higher than externally-mounted e-axles), saving ~30 kWh per 100 km.
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Bosch × JMC parallel-shaft light-truck e-axle — over 99% SiC power module; joint Nanchang line went live January 2025, mass production May 2025.
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Inovance LS32-2 third-generation e-axle — peak 110 kW / 260 N·m / 16,000 rpm, CLTC efficiency 93%+.
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Wanliyang DQ690 — oil-cooled flat-wire motor 12,000 rpm+, full-aluminum gearbox.
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Wuling Industry T-type axle — 4.5–6 t axle load, 40–50 kg lighter than peers; second-generation integrated co-axial e-axle cumulative shipments broke 1.5 million units, #1 in China production.
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Pangu (盘毂) 4T in-wheel / 13T three-speed e-axle and GAC Commercial T9 with Hande QF18 (single-axle peak torque 35,000 N·m, dual-axle weight –500 kg).
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Rimac "STINTEG 300 & 550" — power density >8 kW/kg, torque density >90 N·m/kg, rotor speed 25,000 rpm.
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United Electronics first 400 V multi-in-one oil-cooled e-axle mass production scheduled 2026; Jingjin Electric new-generation oil-cooled three-in-one CV e-drive to launch at Beijing Auto Show 2026.
Market sizing (2025): global commercial-vehicle electric drive axle revenue RMB 8.646 billion → projected RMB 13.85 billion by 2032 (CAGR 7.3%, 2026–2032). Heavy-truck e-axle market 2025 ~RMB 2.911 billion globally, projected to reach RMB 39.48 billion by 2031 (CAGR 38.5%). Annual production capacity ~2 million units; 2025 sales ~1.2 million units; ASP ~USD 963; gross margin ~19%.
Strategic moves: Hande signed a strategic agreement with Garrett Motion in April 2025 to co-develop next-generation e-axles (mass production 2027). Hendrickson will unveil ELECTRAAX at ACT Expo in May 2026. ZF, Dana, Dongfeng Dana, Allison, Schaeffler, Hande, Suzhou Lvdu, Hendrickson dominate the global supplier landscape.
5. Axle Lightweighting — Magnesium Breaks Through
Seres × Chongqing University × Baowu Magnesium × USTB announced at the 5th Lightweighting Conference (Chongqing, November 18, 2025) a successful pilot of an ultra-large integrated die-cast magnesium alloy rear-body structure — a breakthrough in 48 key technologies (12 going "0 to 1"). Compared with an aluminum-alloy rear body, weight reduction reaches 21.8%, with +10% performance improvement. The roadmap: current 20 kg per vehicle → 2026 + e-drive housing (single part
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