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The World Ahead | Business in 2025

To see the cars of the future, look at China’s electric vehicles

With their surprising and innovative features, they are streets ahead

TWBusiness
He’s done things you never expectedPhotograph: Courtesy of BYD

By Simon Wright, Industry editor, The Economist

The main appeal of a Chinese electric vehicle (ev) to foreign buyers is obvious: high quality at prices Western carmakers cannot match (even allowing for import tariffs on Chinese vehicles). But Chinese EVs do not just offer lower prices. They also have more impressive features. The styling and technology in their 2025 models show where cars, as a whole, may be heading.

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This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition of The World Ahead 2025 under the headline “Xi’s electric”

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