Electric Vehicles and Industry Innovations: Key Developments in China’s Automotive Sector on April 27, 2025

Automotive News Briefing – April 27, 2025
Shanghai Municipal Economic and Information Commission: Promoting Transformation of Automobile Enterprises and Strengthening Innovative Applications of Intelligent Driving Models
The 2025 Yangtze River Delta New Energy Vehicle Industry Chain Supply Chain Innovation Cooperation Conference recently took place at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai. During the conference, Han Dadong, the second-level inspector of the Shanghai Municipal Economic and Information Commission and head of the Automobile Industry Division, emphasized the significance of the automotive sector as a key industry for Shanghai. In light of the ongoing global automotive industry transformation, Shanghai is committed to addressing the challenges in the sector’s transformation and upgrading, aiming to develop a world-class automotive industry hub and facilitate integrated development in the Yangtze River Delta region. Significant progress has been made in recent years.
Han highlighted that the current global competitive landscape in the automotive industry is shifting towards electrification, intelligence, and AI, with clear trends in component integration, lightweight design, and more. Coupled with geopolitical influences such as international trade frictions and tariff barriers, the automotive supply chain is facing significant reshaping and transformation. To enhance the competitiveness of the automotive industry across the Yangtze River Delta, Shanghai will push for the reform and transformation of vehicle manufacturers, strengthen the application of innovative technologies like intelligent driving models, and expedite the production and market introduction of new models such as HiPhi, Audi, and Shangjie, thus promoting collaborative development across the automotive supply chain.
China’s Automotive Industry Enters Acceleration Phase: Cui Dongshu from the Passenger Car Association reported that from January to March 2025, the import of vehicles decreased to 95,000 units, a 39% drop year-on-year. The total volume of imported vehicles fell from 1.24 million in 2017 to only 800,000 in 2023, with projections of 700,000 imports in 2024, down 12%. March 2025 alone saw imports drop to 39,000 units, a 27% decrease, though there are signs of slight improvement.
The continued decline in the import vehicle market is primarily attributed to a volatile international trade environment and changes in domestic consumption structures.
China National Heavy Duty Truck Group and Toyota Motor Corporation: Recently signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Nagoya, Japan. The companies have begun mass deliveries of jointly developed hydrogen fuel cell trucks. Moving forward, they plan to expand their collaboration in the research and development of hydrogen fuel commercial vehicles, demonstration operations, promotional applications, and business model innovation.
Porsche’s R&D Center: Porsche announced at the 2025 Shanghai International Auto Show that its Chinese R&D center located in the Hongqiao International Central Business District has completed a strategic structural upgrade, with a new office expected to begin operations in the second half of this year. This marks a historic upgrade for Porsche’s R&D system in China.
Xingxing Charging: Unveiled its “Liquid-Cooled Super Charge 2.0” two-megawatt charging system at the 2025 Shanghai Auto Show. The combined power pool capability has increased to 10 megawatts, and the dual-gun output current has reached 2400A, with a startup time reduced to three seconds. The liquid-cooled dual guns have already been commercially scaled worldwide. Following this upgrade, the single-gun output current can reach 1200A, and the maximum current for dual guns in parallel has increased to 2400A, catering to high-energy consumption scenarios such as heavy-duty trucks and electric vessels.
Tesla: Recently refunded early reservation fees to customers who pre-ordered the Model 3 in India, sparking speculation about a new vehicle launch in the country. An email stated, “We wish to temporarily refund your reservation fee. Once we finalize our sales plan in India, we will reach out to the market again. We hope to see you again when we are ready to launch and deliver in your country.” These communications originated from Tesla’s domain and were signed as “Tesla India.” Some customers reported receiving phone calls regarding their Model 3 reservations, which date back to 2016, with refunds linked to the discontinuation of the older Model 3.
The path for Tesla’s entry into India has been quite challenging.