LetterfromChina:NewenergyvehiclesshinebrightatBeijingautoshow_GuangmingOnlineVisitorswatchthedemonstrationofabatteryswapstationofChinesebrandNIOatthe2024BeijingInternationalAutomotiveExhibitioninShunyiDistrict,Beijing,capitalofChina,April25,2024.(Xinhua/JuHuanzong)ByXinhuawriterZhengJingxiaBEIJING,May1(Xinhua)--StandinginthebustlingexhibitionhalloftheBeijingInternationalExhibitionCenter,IwasoverwhelmedbythecrowdsduringthefirstdayoftheBeijingautoshow."Todayisexclusivelyformedia.Justimaginehowcrowdeditwillbeonpublicdays,"saidacolleaguebluntly.Wecouldn'tagreemore.Officialdatasoonconfirmedwhatwefelt.Thousandsofmediaorganizationsandapproximately20,000reportersattendedtheautoshowonthisday,surpassingtheattendanceofallotherautoshowsworldwideinhistory,accordingtotheChinaCouncilforthePromotionofInternationalTrade.Reporterswerespottedatnearlyeverycarbooth,wieldingcamerasorfilmingwithcameramen.Somewereengagedinlive-streaming,busyshowcasingthedetailsofnewlyunveiledvehiclemodelsorfieldingquestionsfromnetizens.Socialmediatrafficnaturallygravitatestowardstopicsthatpiquepublicinterest.AttheBeijingautoshow,onesignificantdrawisthenewelectricvehicles(NEVs).It'sfairtosaythatNEVfleetsandmanufacturerslikeBYD,CheryandXiaomigarneredthemostattention,notonlyfromChinesevisitorsbutalsofromforeigners.Thelatter,typicallyingroupsofthreetofour,werejustaseagerastheirChinesecounterpartstoexperiencenewmodelsatthelauncheventsofChinese-brandcars.Therewerenoindicationsofoversupplyasrepresentativesfromautomakerswerefullyoccupiedaddressingcustomerinquiriesornetworkingwithbusinesspartners.Sadly,fewofthemhadtheopportunitytositdownforatalkwithusreporters.Moreoftenthannot,wehadtosettleforexchangingWeChatcontactsandarrangingpossibleinterviewsforlater.Thesentimentforcontinueddemandgrowthisstrong,supportedbyindustrialdataandexpertanalysis.InthefirsthalfofApril,theretailpenetrationrateofnewenergypassengercarsinChinasurpassed50percentforthefirsttime,indicatingthatoneoutofeverytwocarssoldisanNEV.OuyangMinggao,anexpertonnewenergypowersystemsandaprofessoratTsinghuaUniversity,haspredictedthattheNEVmarketshareinChinawillbebetween36percentand41percentin2024,upfrom31percentlastyear.Giventhatabout30millionNEVsweresoldinChinalastyear,themarketsharegrowthwouldbetranslatedtoanincreaseofasmanyas3millionNEVs.TheNEVmarketshareexpansionwillcontinuetill2026,whenNEVsareexpectedtodominatethemarketwithashareofover50percent,accordingtoOuyang.Contrarytothenarrativeofexcesscapacityhypedupbysomeoverseaspoliticians,theNEVsectorandthebroadergreenindustryworldwideneedaboostinproduction,especiallyconsideringtheclimatecrisisandthepressingneedtodecarbonizethetransportsector.AccordingtotheInternationalEnergyAgency,boththeglobaldemandforNEVsandnewlyinstalledcapacityofphotovoltaicpowerwillbeaboutfourtimesthatof2022in2030,surgingto45millionunitsand820gigawatts,respectively.Thesepredictionssuggestthattheglobalgreenindustriesarestillintheearlystagesofdevelopmentandneedtorampupcapacitytomeetthegrowingdemand.Giventhedemandforenvironmentallyfriendlyproducts,itmightbeamorerationaldecisiontoaddresstherootcauseofglobalwarmingbycuttingbackontheexcessivecapacityofcombustionengine-drivenvehicles.Companiesarequicktoadapttomarketshifts.TheimpressivedisplayofNEVshighlightstheeagernessofcarmakerstomeetmarketdemand,whethertheyareChineseorforeignmanufacturers.Attheshow,theGermanautogiantAudiunveileditsfirstfully-electricmodeltailoredfortheChinesemarket,whileMercedes-Benzalsodebuteditsall-electricSUV.Theautoshowisabuzzwithexcitementascompanies,reportersandthepublicengageinlivelyinteractions.It'sevidentthatanirreversibleandunstoppablechangeisunderwayintheglobalautoindustry,withNEVspoisedtodominatetheroadsinthefuture.■Editor:DisclaimerTheviewsandopinionsexpressedinthisarticlearethoseoftheauthor's,GMW.cnmakesnorepresentationsastoaccuracy,suitability,orvalidityofanyinformationonthissiteandwillnotbeliableforanyerrors,omissions,ordelaysinthisinformation.