The boom of Chinese car sales in Mexico appears to be slowing down, after failing to grow by double digits for the first time in four years, the newspaper El Economista reported Monday. However, the data is preliminary, as some Chinese vehicle brands have not yet shared sales figures with the National Institute of Geography and Statistics (INEGI).
China positioned itself as the main supplier of imported light vehicles in Mexico between 2022 and 2024. However, its growth rate has fallen in recent months owing to lower customer satisfaction and uncertainty around the future of Chinese imports due to growing trade tensions between China and the U.S. under President-elect Donald Trump.
A Chirey SUV in the streets of Condesa, Mexico City. (RiveraNotorio/Flickr)
Chinese car sales increased by 9.8% in 2024, to 302,837 units, contributing 20.2% of the total light vehicle sales in Mexico, INEGI data shows.
By contrast, Chinese car sales rose by 103% in 2021, 128.4% in 2022 and 51.4% in 2023, as China rapidly expanded its share of the Mexican market from just 0.3% in 2017.
In the major vehicle-producing state of Guanajuato in Mexico’s Bajío region, Chinese automakers contributed 7.7% of total car sales in 2024, according to a Mexican Association of Automobile Distributors (AMDA) report. Guanajuato had the seventh-most car sales of any Mexican state last year.
One reason for China’s rapid sales growth was General Motors’s shift from using Mexican car components to Chinese, as well as Chevrolet’s decision to move manufacturing operations for its Aveo and Sonic vehicles from Mexico to China. The Chinese brand SAIC Motors, the parent company of MG Motor, took over the manufacturing business for the new Aveo, the Onyx, the Groove and the Captiva.
GM has been the biggest seller of Chinese-assembled vehicles in Mexico since 2018.
The rise in the popularity of cars from Chinese automakers also contributed to the rapid rise in growth. Brands such as MG Motor, Chirey, Omoda, Changan, Great Wall Motor and Jetour have become more widely known, together registering imports of 116,000 units to Mexico in 2024, according to INEGI.
Some major Chinese automakers have not reported their sales to INEGI, including BYD, Geely, Zeekr, GAC and Bestune.
Recent customer satisfaction studies from the consumer insights company J.D. Power showed that overall satisfaction with Chinese-branded cars was among the lowest in Mexico, which likely contributed to lower sales growth.
Chinese brands scored 812 points out of 1,000 on the APEAL (Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout) scale, compared to Japanese brands, at 899, and South Korean brands, with 896. Mercedes-Benz came out on top with a score of 932.
Sales are also lagging due to poor consumer confidence in the lead-up to Trump’s presidential inauguration on Jan. 20. Trump has threatened to increase tariffs on Chinese imports by an additional 10%. This follows the introduction of 100% tariffs on Chinese imports by the Biden administration in 2024.
With reports from El Economista, Periódico Correo, BBC and J.D. Power
