Chinese Automakers Hit Hard as Russian Market Crashes 🚗💥

The Russian market that looked so promising to Chinese carmakers in 2023? It's turned into something of a disaster by late 2025. When Western car companies left Russia after Ukraine, Chinese brands rushed in. Now everything's flipped upside down 🔄

Russia slapped huge "recycling fees" on imports. We're talking $8,000+ on basic models. Interest rates? Sky-high. Normal people can't finance cars anymore. Not good.

Sales dropped 27% in six months. Chinese imports? Down 62%. Brutal 📉

Pain Across Chinese Brands 🔥

Geely's exports fell 8% since January. Great Wall Motor is barely surviving.

Even Chery isn't thriving like before. They're still growing, but at 11% instead of 25%. The momentum seems lost.

BYD doubled overseas sales. Interesting. They don't officially sell in Russia. Smart move, maybe? 📊

The deeper problem? Too many cars in China. Price wars everywhere. Russia was their escape valve. Now it's gone. And more countries are adding tariffs. It's kind of surprising how quickly things changed 🌍

Politics Getting Messy ⚡

Car troubles mirror bigger tensions. Trump just said European leaders are coming to talk about ending the Ukraine war. He seems confident it "will be settled soon." We'll see.

Meanwhile, Brazil's Lula is gathering BRICS virtually. Xi and Putin will likely join. Trump's threats are the main topic - he's talking about 100% tariffs if they abandon the dollar 💰

Brazil wants emerging markets to stand together. It's not entirely clear if this will work, but they're trying 🌐

Russian Brands See an Opening 🛣️

Local companies like AvtoVAZ, GAZ and KAMAZ might benefit. Less Chinese competition means they can grab back some market share. Home field advantage matters again 🏭

For Beijing, it's a wake-up call. Don't count on just one market. For everyone else? It shows how business and politics are totally mixed up now 🚀

The easy days of Chinese carmakers taking over abandoned markets? Probably over. They need new plans. Fast 🌕