Chinese cars are taking over the global south

Petrol engines, not batteries, are powering their growth

“Styling, build quality and polish” were “frankly lacklustre”. The review in Car and Driver, a respected motoring publication, of a vehicle made by BYD on display at the Detroit Motor Show in 2009 was hardly encouraging for a car that its Chinese manufacturer hoped to start exporting to America in a few years.

This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “High-speed chase”

From the February 15th 2025 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

The world’s top condom-maker is getting squeezed

Will Karex break under pressure?

Franchising has quietly made countless Americans rich

In the age of AI, running a McDonald’s may soon look a lot more appealing

Why you should (almost) always look on the bright side of life

The benefits—and dangers—of optimism

Can an Italian company disrupt Germany’s broken railway industry?

Deutsche Bahn could soon have a rival

A new mega-deal shows how AI has turned utilities into hot property

NextEra and Dominion must now win over regulators

How Star Wars went from space opera to soap opera

Disney turned its flagship film franchise into TV fodder. Can it go back to the big screen?