The U.S. has decided to raise tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles from the current 25 percent to 100 percent, and the EU has imposed temporary tariffs of up to 47.6 percent on Chinese electric vehicles. In response, Chinese electric car makers are eyeing the Korean automobile market, which is dominated by Hyundai Motor and Kia, in their search for new overseas markets.
China’s electric vehicle Geely announced that it will enter the Korean luxury electric vehicle market by early 2026. Zeeker, a luxury Geely electric vehicle brand, will open exhibition halls for sale in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province by the end of next year and start delivering in the first quarter of 2026. The first electric vehicle model to be launched in the Korean market is likely to be the Zeeker001, which can travel up to 620 km per charge, but it has not been confirmed yet, according to Geely.
Geely has become the second-largest shareholder by acquiring a 34.02% stake in Renault Korea Motors in 2022, and plans to produce the Polestar 4, an electric car, at Renault Korea Motors’ Busan plant from the second half of next year. “As seen by Tesla’s success, there is a lot of demand for luxury electric cars in Korea,” said Lee Hang-gu, head of the Automotive Convergence Technology Institute. “Chinese electric cars have various functions,” and evaluated them as competitive. In response to tariffs from the U.S. and EU, Geely also predicted that there is a possibility that it will even consider producing electric cars for export using Renault plants in Korea.
Earlier, South Korea’s Ministry of Environment proposed a subsidy reform plan that relatively penalizes electric vehicles using lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries controlled by Chinese companies, which is considered a measure to protect domestic electric vehicles against the Chinese offensive.
Founded in 1986, Geely Group has more than 10 brands under its wing, including Geely Automotive, Sweden Volvo, premium electric vehicle brand Polestar, and British high-performance vehicle Lotus. Zicker was the first major Chinese EV maker to list on the U.S. stock market in May since 2021.
JENNIFER KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
