Adoption of Chinese cars and the shift to electric vehicles: Early evidence from Norway
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: Brands are a powerful information device in the market for cars, where asymmetric information is a prevalent issue. Reliance on brands can also act as a barrier to entry for new entrants. The transition to electric vehicles may weaken this barrier and give an opening to new entrants. Several Chinese automobile manufacturers have sought to start exporting electric cars to developed markets. I study data from the world's leading market for electric vehicles, Norway, to provide some early descriptive evidence on the patterns of Chinese-brand new car sales. As of the end of 2022, Chinese-branded cars make up a small but growing share of new vehicle registrations. Using a Bayesian multilevel regression model, I find evidence of local peer effects: Previous sales of a Chinese branded car in a postal code substantially increases the probability of a new car sale being Chinese. I also hypothesize that municipalities with high penetrations of electric cars will be associated with higher penetrations of Chinese-branded new car sales. I do not find evidence for this. The findings have important implications for the development of the electric vehicle market as well as for traditional automakers.
Source: Transport Policy
Author: Johannes Mauritzen
Institution: Norwegian University of Science and Technology
Language: English
Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $2,990
OpenAlex ID: W4402893133