Gasgoo Munich- On October 21, at the 2026 World Intelligent Connected Vehicle Conference, Chery Holding Group Chairman Yin Tongyue shared his views on automotive internationalization. He noted that while domestic automakers' export volumes continue to climb, drawing attention from overseas markets, internationalization remains a complex, systematic undertaking. It requires a long-term commitment, he argued, rather than a narrow focus on simply shipping vehicles abroad.
Image Credit: 2026 World Intelligent Connected Vehicle Conference
Yin Tongyue proposed that the core of internationalization is shifting from "selling to the world" to "growing globally and taking root globally," deeply integrating into local technology, supply, and value chains.
This involves aligning with international standards and leveraging global R&D layouts to bring local engineers into product definition. Equally important is advancing localized R&D, manufacturing, procurement, and talent development to compete globally on equal footing. He revealed that Chery's Malaysia project aims to create a benchmark for localization, implementing an integrated layout of R&D, production, supply, and sales.
Citing the Rosslyn plant in South Africa as an example, he explained how Chery revitalized aging, idle capacity by completing electrification and smart upgrades while retaining all original employees, thereby helping establish a local new-energy supply chain. Similar models are being used to overhaul idle capacity in markets like Spain. Yin Tongyue believes that Chinese automakers going global should mirror the approach of early foreign automakers entering China — cultivating local supply chains and driving synchronous industrial transformation.
Yin Tongyue stated bluntly that automakers cannot expand blindly; they must prioritize ESG and social responsibility to pursue a sustainable path. He warned the industry against high-profile promotion and vicious price competition. The lessons from the motorcycle industry's low-price, low-quality exports are worth heeding, he cautioned, noting that blind expansion will ultimately result in "turning overseas expansion into a sunk cost."
Yin Tongyue called on domestic automakers to remain humble and low-key as they expand overseas, actively collaborating with traditional foreign automakers on their transformation. Chery, for its part, is willing to share its overseas experience to achieve win-win outcomes with all parties, making Chinese cars an integral part of the global automotive industry.
