EUROPEAN OEMS IN CHINA — Company Snapshot Aug-26: Key launches start to materialise amid an orderly market push, yet structural pressure persists

Recent weeks have brought a series of Chinese regulations targeting the auto market, both domestically and in overseas expansion, all directed at creating a more orderly market environment. China has released a 15th Five-Year Plan for the intelligent connected NEV sector, targeting NEVs at 70% of passenger-car sales by 2030 alongside supply-side discipline - capacity controls, phase-out of inefficient players and active encouragement of consolidation. This comes on top of a special campaign targeting vehicle quality, stricter supplier payment rules and curbs on ultra-low-priced models and price wars. For the German premium brands, which have been unwilling to chase volume at Chinese price points, a cooling of the discount spiral and a renewed focus on vehicle quality offer tactical relief. However, the structural pressure remains, as the same measures raise the competitiveness of the top-tier local players by squeezing out weak capacity and forcing consolidation. On launches, Mercedes