China's car sales surpass Japan, ranking first globally

Based on new car sales in 2025, Chinese automakers’ global sales will rise to the top for the first time, with Japanese cars—having held first place for more than 20 years—dropping to second. China’s auto exports have already taken the lead, cementing its status as a major automobile power. To counter Chinese companies with stronger price competitiveness, countries are likely to set up barriers in terms of tariffs and new standards. As friction intensifies worldwide, protectionism aimed at protecting domestic companies may strengthen.

Nikkei Economic News compiled the figures based on materials released by each company from January to November 2025 and data from S&P Global Automotive (S&P Global Mobility). Sales include commercial vehicles. They cover sales in both the domestic market and overseas markets such as exports. Countries are classified according to the proportion of investment; when each side invests half, the country is determined by the country to which the manufacturer of the brand name at the time of sale belongs.

Chinese automakers’ global sales are expected to grow year on year by 17%, reaching about 27 million vehicles. In 2023, China took the lead in auto exports for the first time. Overall sales will also move to the top in 2025.

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Nikkei Economic News and the Financial Times merged in November 2015 to become part of the same media group. An alliance formed by two newspapers—both founded in the 19th century, in Japan and the UK—is now carrying forward collaboration across a wide range of areas, including joint special features, under the banner of “high-quality, the strongest economic journalism.” This time, as part of that initiative, the two newspapers’ Chinese websites exchange articles.