China warns UK off EU-style EV tariffs as its brands take 23.3% of the market

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on October 19, 2026 that it would take firm countermeasures if the UK insists on restricting Chinese electric vehicles, and urged London to follow WTO rules and think twice before following the EU's lead. The warning lands as Chinese brands took 23.3% of UK new-car registrations in September, almost double their 12.4% share a year earlier.

The ministry was answering a question about trade minister Anas Sarwar, who said in remarks reported on October 15 that Britain and the EU must "work together and act in lockstep" on China's dominance in carmaking, and that tariff discussions with European partners continue. MOFCOM called China-UK auto cooperation complementary and mutually beneficial, and said it would watch the UK's next steps closely. It did not say what it would retaliate against.

Sarwar's remarks tie tariffs to a bigger prize for London: a place in the EU's Made in Europe rules under the Industrial Accelerator Act, which favour EU-made goods in some public procurement. A Franco-German proposal would require Britain to dynamically align with EU trade defence measures to join. Downing Street called it premature to speculate on terms and said the UK keeps all tariffs under review, while the Chinese embassy in London said it was "firmly opposed to any discriminatory practice involving tariff hikes" on Chinese products.

Chinese brands accounted for 81,776 of the 350,536 new cars registered in Britain in September, against 38,934 of 312,891 a year earlier. That count covers 15 brands, from BYD and MG to Leapmotor, XPeng and newcomer Lepas, and leaves out Chinese-owned Polestar, Lotus and smart. Adding those three would lift the total to 84,544, or 24.1%. From January to September, the 15 brands took 304,759 registrations, a 17.5% share, up from 8.7% in the same period of 2025.

BYD (HKG: 1211) was the UK's second-largest brand with 20,140 registrations, a 5.75% share and 78.7% more than a year earlier, behind only Volkswagen's 25,972. MG, owned by SAIC Motor (SHA: 600104), added 18,026. The Jaecoo 7 from Chery (HKG: 9973) was Britain's best-selling car with 10,814 registrations, ahead of the Model 3 from Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) on 9,929.

The Jaecoo 7 topped UK registrations in September with 10,814, as it did in the March plate-change month (Jaecoo)

September is one of Britain's two number-plate change months, so registrations jump every year and the climb from August says little about momentum. BYD's total compares with 3,867 in August, but its share is the cleaner read: 5.75%, up from 4.10% in August and 3.60% in September 2025. The whole market grew 12.0% year on year.

SMMT's brand totals are not split by powertrain, but the companies' own figures show how much of the growth still runs on an engine. OMODA&JAECOO UK said plug-in hybrids made up 55.7% of its September registrations, with full hybrids at 10.4%, pure petrol at 23.9% and battery-electric models at just 10.0%. Chery said its Super Hybrid models made up 83.12% of its own-brand September volume, and its UK managing director said the brand's first electric vehicle is still to come.

BYD said the Seal U DM-i plug-in hybrid remained its best-selling UK car, with the Atto 2, sold both as an EV and as a DM-i plug-in hybrid, in second place. Its top battery-electric model was the Sealion 7 on 3,191, just ahead of the Seal on 3,184. With the Leapmotor (HKG: 9863) B10 on 1,883, they were the only Chinese-brand models in SMMT's top 10 battery-electric chart for September, at 8,258 registrations between them.

The Seal U DM-i plug-in hybrid stayed BYD's best-selling UK model in a month when BYD registered 20,140 cars (BYD)

That mix matters because the EU's duties cover only battery-electric cars. Since October 2024, Brussels has charged China-built BEVs countervailing duties of 17.0% for BYD, 18.8% for Geely and 35.3% for SAIC, with 20.7% for other cooperating makers and 7.8% for Tesla, on top of the standard 10% import duty. Hybrids pay only the 10%, which is why the EU has since reached a separate understanding with Beijing on hybrid trade, one Brussels says could cut projected Chinese hybrid exports by more than half.

Britain charges the same 10% third-country duty on new battery-electric cars as on new plug-in hybrids, with no China-specific rate. A copy of the EU measures would leave the Seal U DM-i at today's 10%, along with the Jaecoo 7, which starts at £29,210 (c. $38,767) and is sold with petrol, self-charging hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains but not as a full EV. The UK's EV subsidy already leaves Chinese brands out by another route: no Chinese-brand model is on the government's list of cars eligible for the Electric Car Grant of up to £3,750 (c. $4,977), which sets carbon thresholds for vehicle assembly and battery cell production locations.

If Beijing did hit back at British cars, the exposure is modest next to the EU trade. British factories built more than 717,000 cars in 2025 and exported 555,826, or 77.5% of output. China took 6.3% of UK car exports, or 35,017 cars, against 315,175 for the EU, so Brussels buys roughly nine times as many British-built cars as Beijing. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said in September that an export-led sector has to weigh the risk of retaliation before it sets tariffs.

Chinese brands are still building out in Britain. Geely Auto (HKG: 0175) said on October 19 that it has signed its 100th UK retail outlet, less than a year after entering the market, and that it registered more than 5,000 cars in Britain in September alone. BYD says it already has 147 UK dealer sites. Beijing, meanwhile, is trimming its own export support: the VAT export rebate on new energy vehicles falls to 9% from 13% from April 1, 2027, under a notice published on October 12.

Any UK tariff would also take time, since duties need an investigation that could take more than a year, while quotas can move faster. The open question is whether London would copy only the battery-electric duties, which would miss the Jaecoo 7, the Seal U DM-i and roughly nine in ten of Omoda and Jaecoo's September registrations, and what Beijing would count as a restriction worth answering when China took just 6.3% of Britain's car exports last year.

Conversion rate: 1 USD = 6.7200 CNY and 1 GBP = 8.9187 CNY as of October 20, 2026.