Two of Chinas EV Makers Announce a Deal as Auto Industry Moves Toward Consolidation

Two leading electric carmakers in China said on Monday they would combine their battery charging subsidiaries, in the latest sign of consolidation in a severely crowded Chinese car industry.The deal will combine divisions of Nio and Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, with Nio also acquiring 10 percent of a separate Geely business.The transaction comes just two weeks after another Chinese automaker, Guangzhou Automobile Group, announced plans for a complex tie-up with First Automotive Works, a large manufacturer.Last year, two of the Chinese car industry’s giants, Dongfeng Motor and Changan Automobile, were in discussions to merge but did not reach a deal.China’s car industry has immense overcapacity: enough car factories to build every car sold in China as well as all of the production in the United States and Europe.

But its domestic car market has been shrinking since 2017, as Chinese consumer spending has been depressed by a plunge in housing prices.“There are simply too many automakers in China — mergers, acquisitions and restructuring will be a trend going forward,” said David Zhang, a visiting professor at Huanghe University of Science and Technology in Zhengzhou, China.Car sales in China shrank 20.8 percent in the first eight months of this year from the same period in 2025.Carmakers have tried to compensate by increasingly shipping their cars overseas.

China’s vehicle exports are expected to reach at least 10 million this year, up from one million cars in 2020.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe....