Cui Dongshu from the China Passenger Car Association: Lithium battery exports reached 14.2 billion USD in the first two months, with a sharp decline in lithium battery exports to the United States

Cui Dongshu, Secretary-General of the China Passenger Car Market Information Joint Conference, stated that in 2026, lithium batteries will be one of the "new three items" with export advantages in mainland China, maintaining high growth rates before the reduction of export tax rebates. In the first two months of 2026, lithium battery exports reached USD 14.2 billion, an increase of 46%. This stands in stark contrast to the sluggish exports of solar cells, also classified as "new three items," and the intensifying competition within the industry, as lithium battery exports achieve resilient growth through diversified market layouts.

From the market structure, the main market for lithium battery exports from mainland China in 2026 is the European Union, with market demand reaching approximately 43.1%, an annual increase of 2.6 percentage points. Exports of lithium batteries to the United States have sharply shrunk to 9.7%, a year-on-year decline of 6.4 percentage points. The decline in exports to the United States is equivalent to the total scale of exports to Southeast Asia, which ranks third