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The Chinese truck market is expected to keep its positive momentum throughout 2024 and beyond, reaching a projected value of nearly half a trillion USD by 2030. This growth is fueled by several factors.
Firstly, China’s ever-expanding economy continues to drive demand for goods, requiring a robust trucking sector to handle the increased freight movement.
Secondly, government policies promoting infrastructure development and urbanization will create new transportation routes and construction projects, further pushing truck sales.
Thirdly, the rise of e-commerce puts pressure on fast and efficient delivery networks, leading to a potential rise in lighter commercial vehicles.
However, the market won’t be without challenges. Stricter emission regulations will push manufacturers to develop cleaner technologies like electric and hydrogen-powered trucks, impacting production costs.
Despite these hurdles, the electric truck segment in China is poised for significant growth due to government incentives and advancements in battery technology, making them more affordable and efficient.
Furthermore, the adoption of autonomous driving technologies, particularly truck platooning (automated convoys) promises to enhance efficiency and safety on highways, reducing fuel consumption and operational costs.
Competition within the market will also be a key factor. Established domestic players like BYD and Dongfeng will face pressure from foreign manufacturers entering the Chinese market with advanced technologies.
Overall, the Chinese truck market presents a dynamic landscape with both opportunities and challenges. The focus on sustainability, technological advancements, and infrastructure development will shape the industry’s future in the coming years.
China Truck refers to a broad category of vehicles utilised primarily for the transportation of goods within China’s vast territory. These trucks serve as the backbone of the country’s logistics and supply chain infrastructure, facilitating the movement of goods across various industries and regions. China’s diverse terrain and economic activities necessitate a wide range of truck types, each tailored to specific transportation needs.
The types of China Trucks encompass heavy-duty, medium-duty, and light-duty variants, catering to different payload capacities and usage scenarios. Heavy-duty trucks are commonly employed for long-haul transportation of heavy goods such as construction materials and machinery. Medium-duty trucks find applications in regional distribution and urban deliveries, offering versatility and manoeuvrability. Light-duty trucks serve as multipurpose vehicles for urban logistics, including parcel delivery and small-scale cargo transport.
Benefits of China Trucks include their pivotal role in supporting economic growth by facilitating trade and commerce. They provide efficient and reliable transportation solutions, enabling businesses to reach markets and customers effectively. Moreover, China Trucks contribute to employment generation and infrastructure development, fostering socio-economic progress. Additionally, these vehicles offer flexibility in adapting to diverse cargo types and transportation requirements, enhancing supply chain resilience.
However, China Trucks face several risks and challenges that impact their operations and market dynamics. Environmental concerns related to emissions and pollution pose regulatory compliance challenges, prompting the industry to invest in cleaner technologies. Moreover, fluctuations in fuel prices and availability can affect operational costs and profitability, necessitating fuel-efficient solutions and alternative fuel adoption.
Infrastructure limitations, including road conditions and transportation networks, present obstacles to efficient trucking operations, particularly in remote and rural areas. Additionally, market competition, both domestic and international, drives innovation and quality improvements but also intensifies pricing pressures and market saturation. Furthermore, the shortage of skilled drivers and workforce issues pose challenges to fleet management and operational efficiency, requiring investment in training and talent acquisition strategies.
In summary, China Trucks play a crucial role in driving economic activities and facilitating trade within China’s vast geographical expanse. Despite their numerous benefits, these vehicles encounter risks and challenges ranging from regulatory compliance and environmental concerns to infrastructure limitations and market competition. Addressing these challenges requires concerted efforts from industry stakeholders, including policymakers, manufacturers, and logistics providers, to ensure sustainable and resilient transportation systems for China’s future development.
In 2020, overall truck sales were record 4.6M units with an approximate growth rate of 40% in all of the segments. Light trucks alone accounted for 45% of the overall truck sales in the country and witnessed the highest growth rate compared to 2019.
Heavy duty trucks accounted for ~35% of the overall volume and witnessed about 38% Y-o-Y growth. Jiefang was the market leader in the heavy trucks segment with market share of ~23%.
China truck market is estimated at $XX Billion in 2023. It is estimated to grow at XX% CAGR in the period 2024-2030.
By Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW):
By Fuel Type:
By Application:
By Level of Automation:
Unlike 2020, the start of 2021 has shown a lot of promise to be the most selling year for trucks in the country. After the first 4 months of 2021, in the light trucks segment volumes have witnessed a growth of 49% for the same period in 2020. In 2021, the sales numbers of light trucks in the period were 814,000.
Second most popular segment in the country, heavy trucks have surpassed the growth rate of light trucks and the Y-o-Y for the period Jan-Apr has been ~57%. The sales volumes in the period are around 465,000.
However, most of the top ten players in the heavy-duty market witnessed a drop in sales in the month of April. After an early burst of heavy trucks, sales might move at a moderate pace for the rest of the year.
From January to April in 2021 the total sales volume of tractor trucks reached 366,000 units, up by 45% Y-o-Y. Beiben is the market leader in the segment as it witnessed a growth of 205% Y-o-Y, followed by Dongfeng.
The below chart shows the volume split of different types of trucks in China in 2020
Apart from the domestic sales the exports have also been reaching new heights. Dongfeng’s commercial vehicle exports jumped by 30% in the Q1 of 2021. In Australian & New Zealand markets GWM’s light trucks have entered the top-10 sellers list with its GWM Power vehicle
CNHTC’s first pickup model VX7, particularly designed for the high-end market, will be launched by the end of 2023. The vehicle is powered by 2.0T gasoline powered engine and Shandean 8AT transmission gearbox and can achieve max power of 221 HP
In May 2021, SAIC Hengyang delivered 1,000 units of electric heavy-duty trucks to Tangshan to transport products from Tangshan Steel. SAIC Hengyang is powered by 282 kwh batteries made by CATL.
In February, Beibei officially deployed its first 100 kW hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in Baotou, Inner Mongolia. The vehicle is jointly developed by Beibei and Shanghai Jiao tong University.
The truck will be used for urban sanitization and the vehicle is able to cover 350km after complete refill of hydrogen In January 2021, Huawei and Trunk, Chinese autonomous truck start-up, entered into a partnership for the R&D and market promotion of the products related to smart port.
The light trucks have 3.5T-8T GVW, vehicle length shorter than 7 meters, two axles, and with the engine power nearly 80-160 kW (the OEMs use the Japanese or Cummins engines on their Light commercial vehicles). The medium-duty trucks have 7.5T-12.0T GVW, vehicle length shorter than 13 meters, two to three axles, and with the engine power between 80-140kW.
The Heavy trucks have GVW above 14T, vehicle length longer than 13 meters, with more than three axles with the engine power up to 500HP (Many vehicles use the Cummins engines with higher engine power).
AUMAN ETX Series
Unlike the bus market in China, the truck market is more consolidated and there are about 15-16 major players. In terms of light trucks, the top 10 players accounted for ~90% of sales in 2021 and top 5 of them account for 62% of that.
Foton, Dongfeng and JAC are the top 3 players in the light trucks segment. These 3 cumulatively account for 42% of sales volume, with Foton being the market leader with XX% share.
In the heavy trucks segment the top 10 players account for ~99% of the overall volume. Out of which top 5 players alone account for ~88% of the sales.
FAW Jeifang, Sinotruck and Dongfeng are the market leaders in the heavy trucks segment. The top 3 players account for 66% of the sales volume and FAW Jeifang is the market leader with XX% share.
