Zeekr’s electric vehicle (EV) sales in Russia have shot up in the last year, putting Chinese car manufacturers ahead of local competition in the country’s small but expanding EV sector, reports Reuters. Chinese carmakers have already seized more than half of Russia’s car market since Western competitors pulled out, after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
Governments in Europe and the United States are growing increasingly wary of Chinese dominance in the EV sector but Russia, rather than imposing tariffs, is embracing Chinese brands across all automobile sectors to prop up its car industry.
From May 2023 to April 2024, more than 20,500 new EVs were sold in Russia, a jump of about 350% on the previous year, with Chinese brands accounting for over half of sales, according to data from the Russian analytical agency Autostat.