China's EV deliveries to stay strong despite price increases: Fitch

BEIJING, April 9 (Xinhua) -- China's electric vehicle (EV) deliveries are likely to remain robust in the coming months despite the recent EV price hikes caused by surging battery costs, according to a report from Fitch Ratings.

China's wholesales deliveries of EVs are expected to rise by over 50 percent, and the market share of EVs will exceed 20 percent in 2022, it said.

Fitch has maintained its bright prospects in the market given strong order backlogs and still-strong demand.

"The latest price increases, however, are likely to affect low-end EVs more than high-end ones, as potential buyers for cheaper EVs tend to be more price-sensitive," said the company.

China ranked first globally in terms of the sales of new energy vehicles for the seventh straight year in 2021. It sold 3.52 million units of new energy vehicles last year.