Tesla sold 381,088 cars to Chinese buyers through the first nine months of 2026, down 11.9% from last year, according to CPCA data. Over the same period, Giga Shanghai’s exports more than doubled to 361,972 vehicles.

Nearly half of what Tesla builds in China now leaves China. And Beijing just announced it will cut the tax rebate on EV exports next year.

Laos did something no other country has tried: it banned the import of new gas and diesel passenger cars outright. As of June 1, nearly every new car cleared for import has to be electric.

It’s the most aggressive EV mandate on the planet right now, and it has almost nothing to do with consumer demand.