China EV brands dominate debuts at Singapore Motorshow 

CHINA brands dominated the debuts at Singapore Motorshow 2025 on Thursday (Jan 9), whether in terms of first-time entrants or new models.

Making their first appearance in Singapore were Deepal, Jaecoo, IM Motors, Neta and Yangwang. Four other brands that were introduced in 2024 also made their debuts at the show.

“China’s cars have reached a very high level (of quality), and they are really focused on the export market now,” said Raymond Ng, managing director of Eurokars EV, a Eurokars Group subsidiary.

Held at Suntec City from Jan 9 to 12, the motorshow is organised by the Motor Traders Association of Singapore.

Going with the current

As Singapore moves away from conventional cars, electric vehicles (EVs) continue to form the majority of model debuts at this year’s motorshow.

Last year, out of the more than 30 cars that made their debut, 21 were fully electric, and comprised European, South Korean and Chinese brands.

This year, out of 26 new models, EVs account for 16 – with 12 from China. Another nine are hybrids, and only one new model is powered solely by petrol.

Dealers and representatives of the new brands said that the rise of Chinese brands indicate shifting consumer preferences.

The Eurokars Group, which distributes Chinese-owned mainstream British brand MG, displayed two cars from MG’s IM Motors sub-brand.

“It’s understood now that EVs are the way to go for the future of motoring,” said Ng. Eurokars EV is the Singapore distributor for MG and IM Motors.

“Plus, consumers now fully accept Chinese brands and EVs. So the only big question mark for them is if there is a reputable dealer and distributor in Singapore to back the brand.”

For Premium Automobiles, offering brands from China is not just about being future-ready, but replacing business lost elsewhere.

The distributor used to handle customer retail for Audi, until the German luxury brand shifted to a direct-to-consumer model last year. In the same year, Premium Automobiles acquired the distributorship for two Chinese brands instead: luxury brand Zeekr, and premium EV brand XPeng.

At the motorshow on Thursday, it announced the distributorship for Deepal, a premium EV brand owned by major Chinese state-owned carmaker Changan.

Lee Hoe Lone, managing director of Premium Automobiles, said that the company carefully selected the EV brands to bring here, and chose those with large group backing, good sales performance in China or clear advantages in certain areas.

Zeekr is backed by auto conglomerate Geely, which owns Lotus, Polestar and Volvo, and shares research and development across the group. XPeng positions itself as a leader in artificial intelligence and autonomous driving.

Outside the Middle (Kingdom)

Brand representatives noted a new focus on export markets among Chinese carmakers. According to consulting firm AlixPartners, China’s carmakers are expected to have shipped 5.7 million cars overseas in 2024.

Gao Peng, overseas sales director of Asia-Pacific for Neta, said that export sales are a “core strategy” for the brand, which has shifted its focus from domestic to overseas markets over the past two years.

Fierce competition in China’s EV market led to a price war in 2024. Profit margins narrowed to 4.4 per cent in the first 11 months of 2024, down from 6.2 per cent in 2020, said the China Passenger Car Association.

Besides escaping the tough domestic competition, Chinese brands may also be heading to Singapore and the Asia-Pacific because other foreign markets are less welcoming.

The United States, Canada, the European Union and Turkey have introduced tariffs on Chinese EVs.

Chinese EVs also benefit from extensive government support. China’s incentives to its EV industry have been estimated at more than US$230 billion since 2009.

Automotive consultant Say Kwee Neng noted: “There’s reason to believe that… incentives have a large role to play (in) the proliferation of Chinese EV brands globally, and have fuelled their decision to move overseas.”

Bold dogs, new tricks

At the motorshow, brands that had participated before also displayed new EVs.

South Korean carmaker Kia’s EV5 was one of the few non-Chinese EVs to make a debut – and the only one that is Singapore-made.

The sport utility vehicle (SUV) will be produced at Hyundai’s factory in Bulim Avenue, and it is expected to retail from S$185,000 with a Certificate of Entitlement.

BYD displayed its premium mid-sized SUV, the Sealion 7. Sales began two weeks before the show, with more than 300 units already sold, said James Ng, managing director of BYD Singapore.

The EV giant also showed its first luxury vehicle, the Yangwang U9, a supercar with 960 kilowatts of power and a price of 1.7 million yuan (around S$317,000) in China.

BYD Singapore’s Ng said that there were no immediate plans to launch the Yangwang luxury sub-brand in Singapore, although BYD is looking into the possibility.