EVs from Chinese brands holding value well, data suggests

Why the resale numbers are catching people off guard

The conventional worry with any new-to-market brand is depreciation cliff — you buy it cheap, it drops off a cliff, and you're underwater on the loan before the warranty expires. But the Fleet News data points in the opposite direction for Chinese EVs. We don't have granular percentage figures from the snippet, so I won't invent them, but the directional signal is clear enough to reshape how budget-minded buyers should be running their spreadsheets right now.

Part of the explanation sits in basic supply dynamics. Chinese manufacturers have been aggressively compliant with evolving EV mandates — in the UK, for instance, brands like BYD, SAIC (MG's parent), and Geely are comfortably meeting ZEV Mandate targets, while legacy players such as Volkswagen Group and Stellantis are running significant credit deficits. That compliance advantage, as Auto Express reports, may partly stem from how the regulations were designed, giving newer entrants lower effective targets. Regardless of the policy debate, the practical upshot for consumers is a steady pipeline of competitively priced EVs that aren't being fire-sold to hit quotas — and that helps residuals stay firmer.

The macro picture you should actually care about

Tariffs and trade policy are doing surprisingly little to slow the momentum. Transport & Environment's latest analysis notes that while Western carmakers have shifted some production back to the EU, Chinese brands continue to grow their market share. Chinese-made vehicles now account for roughly 15 per cent of total UK car sales in the first half of 2026, and models like the Jaecoo 7 and BYD Seal have cracked top-seller lists. When a brand is on a genuine volume upswing — not a one-quarter blip — used-car markets tend to respond with healthier demand, which stabilises the price you'll get when it's time to trade in or sell privately.

It's worth noting, though, that regulatory landscapes can shift quickly. The UK Government is consulting on potential fixes to the ZEV Mandate formula that could tighten requirements for newer entrants, and global fixed-income market volatility can ripple into vehicle financing costs almost overnight. If interest rates move, residual-value calculations move with them.

What this means for your buying decision

If you're comparing a Chinese-brand EV against a similarly priced European or Korean alternative, the residual-value story is no longer a reason to dismiss the Chinese option. In fact, it may be a reason to lean toward it — particularly on lease terms, where the projected resale value at lease-end directly determines your monthly payment.

My advice: when you're at the dealership or negotiating a lease online, ask the finance manager to show you the residual-value percentage they're using for the specific model. Compare it side by side with the equivalent from a legacy brand. If the gap is narrower than you expected — and the data suggests it increasingly is — you may find that the Chinese-brand EV delivers a lower effective cost of ownership than the spreadsheet initially implied. Don't just look at sticker price; run the full three- to five-year cost picture, and let the residual data do some of the heavy lifting for you.