Original title: "The world needs more electric vehicles" (theme)

Interview with Wu Kegang, former chief adviser on China affairs of the British Chamber of Commerce (subtitle)

Wu Kegang, senior consultant of China UK business development and former chief China affairs consultant of the British Chamber of Commerce, said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua News Agency recently that from a global perspective, there is no "overcapacity" in the electric vehicle industry. "The world needs more electric cars."

Wu Kegang said that the imbalance in capacity development between countries is mainly due to regional differences in competitiveness. It is misleading to call this imbalance in capacity development "overcapacity".

Wu Kegang believes that the fluctuation of western countries' demand for electric vehicles may be affected by such factors as the reduction of government subsidies and the postponement of the deadline for some countries to phase out fuel vehicles. For example, British Prime Minister Richie Sunak announced last September that the timetable for banning the sale of new gasoline and diesel vehicles would be postponed from 2030 to 2035.

Wu Kegang said that China's electric vehicles are of high quality and low price, which will help the world accelerate the pace of transformation to electric vehicles.

According to the data of China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, China's automobile exports will reach 4.91 million in 2023, up 57.9% year on year. Among them, 1.203 million new energy vehicles were exported, up 77.6% year on year.

In the view of many people in the British automotive industry, China has accelerated the development of the electric vehicle industry in recent years, showing obvious scale advantages, which helps it actively participate in international competition. More Chinese electric vehicle brands entering the UK not only reduced the price of electric vehicles, but also encouraged industry innovation, benefiting both consumers and the automobile industry.

Wu Kegang said that there is no lack of voices from all walks of life in the UK welcoming Chinese electric vehicle brands into the UK and looking forward to deepening the UK China auto industry cooperation, which is a positive signal. "It is hoped that more Chinese enterprises will go to the UK and Europe to explore cooperation opportunities."

(Reporter Zhao Xiuzhi, Larry Nield) Xinhua News Agency, London, May 22