Challenges of Chinese domestic cars

[Anchor]

Chinese electric vehicle company BYD has set a sales record surpassing Hyundai by April of this year.

Chinese automotive companies are showing remarkable growth, but there are concerns about unsustainable growth within China itself.

Why is that? Kim Min-jung reports from Beijing.

[Report]

Last year, BYD surpassed Tesla's sales.

As of April this year, it recorded a cumulative global sales volume of over 1.38 million units, growing nearly 47% compared to the previous year, and outpacing Hyundai by about 26,000 units.

Thanks to a strategy that emphasizes excellent performance at a low price, sales in overseas markets, including Europe, have been steadily increasing every month.

However, there seems to be growing concern surrounding the automotive industry within China itself.

This is due to the massive debts of automotive companies and the intense price competition, with BYD even offering a discount of over 30%.

There are even claims that some automotive companies are suffering from severe financial difficulties, similar to the real estate company 'Evergrande,' which went bankrupt due to an inability to repay debts.

[Wei Jianjun/Chairman of Changcheng Automobile, China/Interview with China Business Network: "There is already an 'Evergrande' in the automotive industry. It just hasn't been revealed yet."]

Industry practices of selling new cars with 0 km mileage as used cars have also been exposed.

In order to boost sales figures, new cars have been processed for delivery and then reluctantly sold at a lower price as used cars.

[Chinese used car seller: "The Bestune B70 is a new car with 0 km mileage, but it has become a used car."]

In China, small and medium-sized automotive companies are being expelled from the market one after another, indicating signs of industrial restructuring and putting them at risk of bankruptcy.

This is KBS News Kim Min-jung in Beijing.