China's new energy passenger vehicle market continued to see robust growth in September, with its penetration rate, a gauge of popularity, in the domestic market climbed to 53.3 percent, according to the data released by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) on Saturday.
This marks the third consecutive month that the penetration rate of new energy passenger vehicle has surpassed 50 percent.
During the first nine months of 2024, total retail sales of new energy passenger cars amounted to 7.13 million units, representing a 37.4 percent increase from the previous year, the CPCA data showed.
Experts attribute the growth to the country's trade-in policies.
Last month, China issued a new circular that increased financial incentives to encourage consumers to scrap their old vehicles and buy new ones.
According to the circular, subsidies for trade-ins of new-energy passenger vehicles have doubled from 10,000 yuan -- a figure stipulated in an April document -- to 20,000 yuan.
Afterward, several local administrations have introduced corresponding subsidy schemes.
"The automobile trade-in policy promoted by the country and the relevant measures introduced by local governments have boosted the confidence of domestic consumers, leading to noticeable increase of retail sales. New energy vehicles have exceeded expectations, further solidifying their global leadership position. The new quality productive forces in auto industry are rapidly shifting from quantitative to qualitative changes," said Chen Shihua, deputy secretary-general of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).
During the January-September period, China's auto production reached approximately 21.47 million units, up 1.9 percent year on year, according to the data released by the CAAM on Saturday.
Auto sales totaled 21.57 million units, marking a 2.4 percent increase from the same period of last year. Notably, both production and sales of new energy vehicles surpassed 8.3 million units, with year-on-year growth exceeding 30 percent in both categories, the data showed.
China's new energy passenger vehicle sales surge in September
China's new energy passenger vehicle sales surge in September
From cutting-edge technology exhibitions to retail stores thousands of kilometers away from Europe and Southeast Asia, China-made robot vacuum cleaners are increasingly becoming a popular choice among consumers worldwide.
At electronics retailers in Berlin, Germany, Chinese brands such as Roborock and Dreame occupy prominent positions in dedicated robot vacuum sections, offering a wide range of products priced between 200 and 2,000 euros.
Many local consumers said that when purchasing smart home appliances including robot vacuum cleaners, they tend to give priority to Chinese-made products.
"It's a good price and good quality. It's also the innovation. I have a feeling that the European brands are not innovating enough," said one customer.
"I think they're always on top of the other technologies. They are getting them out faster. A lot of us are switching to the Chinese technology," another consumer said.
Germany is one of the most important overseas markets for China's floor-cleaning robots.
According to data from market research firm GfK, from January to November 2025, more than six out of 10 robot vacuum cleaners sold in Western Europe were Chinese brands.
Industry data also point to a strong global momentum.
According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), global shipments of smart robot vacuum cleaners reached 17.424 million units in the first three quarters of 2025, representing a year-on-year increase of 18.7 percent.
Chinese brands including Roborock, Ecovacs, Dreame, Xiaomi and Narwal ranked among the world's top five in terms of shipment volume, with a combined share of nearly 70 percent of the global market.
At a robot vacuum cleaner manufacturing plant in Huizhou, south China's Guangdong Province, workers were seen stepping up production of newly launched models that recently debuted at the Consumer Electronics Show in the United States, which concluded Friday in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The factory adjusted its production lines as early as December 2025 and stocked inventory in advance for overseas markets to ensure that new products could be delivered to global consumers at the earliest possible time.
"In 2025, Roborock's global shipments exceeded 7.2 million units. Since 2024, overseas revenue has accounted for more than 50 percent of our total revenue. Our products have now been sold to more than 170 countries and regions, serving more than 20 million households worldwide," said Quan Gang, president of Roborock.
At another robot vacuum cleaner manufacturing facility in Dongguan, Guangdong, rising overseas orders have prompted the company to upgrade its production lines with intelligent technologies to further boost capacity. The factory is currently operating at full load to meet a growing demand.
"For 2026, we have already obtained overseas orders worth at least 300 million to 400 million yuan (around 43 million to 57.3 million U.S. dollars). In addition, we've engaged in strategic cooperation with European home appliance group Cebos Group, and our total confirmed orders have exceeded 600 million yuan (around 86 million U.S. dollars)," said Zhang Junbin, founder and CEO of Narwal Robotics.
Chinese robot vacuum brands gain strong global traction
