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byd

according to reuters, the japanese market has become a stumbling block for byd's global expansion. in order to boost car sales in the japanese market, byd is building electric vehicle charging stations in japan, stepping up marketing efforts and increasing incentives for customers to buy cars.

after years of rapid development, byd has become china's largest electric car maker. now, the company is expanding overseas, including to japan, one of the world's largest auto markets.

however,it remains difficult for foreign automakers to enter the japanese market.demand for electric vehicles has long been sluggish in japan, and the government this year changed the way it calculates subsidies for electric vehicles, reducing them for byd and several of its rivals and raising concerns about protectionism.

to win over japanese car owners, byd offered discounts on the first 1,000 units of its latest model and ran tv commercials starring japanese actresses, a strategy that cost byd more than it expected.

one particular reason byd's overseas expansion has attracted so much attention is that the company's market value is almost equal to that of general motors and ford motor combined.

question

still, some japanese consumers are wary of buying big-ticket chinese products because of concerns about quality. “these cars are great, but i don’t think they’ll sell well in japan,” yukihiro obata, 58, said in july when he visited a byd showroom in yokohama, a city near tokyo, with his son.

"in the eyes of the japanese, japanese manufactured products are better than those from china and south korea. we cannot believe that the quality of chinese products is higher," said yukihiro obata.

byd's electric sedan on display in tokyo

he said he was not opposed to buying foreign cars and was also considering electric vehicles from mercedes-benz, audi and hyundai.

sales volume lags behind

byd opened its first showroom in japan in february last year and has sold more than 2,500 vehicles so far. byd currently offers three models in japan and has more than 30 showrooms.

by comparison, toyota motor sold just over 4,200 electric vehicles in japan during the same period, the latest industry data show. tesla had nearly 17,000 registrations in japan as of the end of march 2023,

atsuki tofukuji, president of byd japan, said:some japanese people really dislike chinese products, so forcing them to be promoted is not a good idea.on the contrary, he hopes to win the favor of consumers through byd's cost-effectiveness.

subsidy reduction

electric cars accounted for just over 1% of the 1.47 million passenger cars sold in japan in the first seven months of this year, industry data show. the data excludes low-powered "kei" microcars made in japan for the domestic market.

sales of electric vehicles have been slow in japan as toyota and other local automakers focus more on hybrid technology.

in april this year, the japanese government revised its electric vehicle subsidy program, claiming that the move was to promote the popularization of charging stations and other infrastructure. previously, the japanese government issued subsidies based on the performance of the car, but now it also considers the number of fast charging stations installed by automakers and after-sales service.

as a result, subsidies for byd's atto 3 suv, which sells for 4.5 million yen (220,000 yuan) in japan, were cut by nearly half, from 650,000 yen to 350,000 yen. atsuki tofukuji said at a company event in july that the subsidy cuts had weighed on car sales.

tofukuji atsuki hopes to take advantage of byd's cost-effectiveness

in response, byd offered customers zero-interest loans from april to june and cashback campaigns for home chargers in july and august. the company also plans to install fast chargers at 100 locations in japan by the end of next year, tofukuji told reuters, a previously undisclosed plan that could help byd secure higher subsidies.

to boost brand awareness, byd began running tv commercials starring japanese actress and model masami nagasawa. while the strategy caused the marketing budget to exceed expectations, it brought the company more customers, tofukuji said. he declined to disclose specific marketing spending amounts.

byd sells models in japan including the rear-wheel drive version of the seal sedan, priced at 5.28 million yen, which is eligible for a 450,000 yen subsidy, and the dolphin model, which starts at 3.63 million yen and is eligible for a 350,000 yen subsidy.

japanese protection

zhou jincheng, manager of the china research department at nagoya-based auto research firm fourin, believes the change in subsidy policy may reflect the japanese government's intention to protect domestic industry.

"they have to take some measures to protect their auto industry," zhou jincheng said.

an official from japan's ministry of industry and commerce said the policy adjustment aims to create an environment for the sustainable use of electric vehicles and promote electric vehicles "the japanese way."

in addition to byd, subsidies for automakers such as mercedes-benz, volkswagen, peugeot, volvo, hyundai motor, and subaru of japan have also been cut. nissan and toyota suvs are still eligible for the maximum subsidy of 850,000 yen. tesla models sold in japan have also received the same or higher subsidies.

byd atto 3

although overall electric vehicle sales in japan are low, foreign car brands accounted for nearly 70% of japan's electric vehicle sales in the first seven months of this year.

just buy byd

the reduction in car subsidies did not stop kyosuke yamazaki, a first-time car buyer in his early 30s, from buying a byd atto 3. because he bought the car after april, he missed out on about $2,000 in subsidies.

he said that compared with japanese cars, he was attracted by the car's longer range, and he did not mind buying chinese cars.

"i used to work in shanghai," he said, "i know byd very well." (author/xiao yu)

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