China saw its lithium battery exports jump by 50% in the first quarter from a year earlier as global demand for green technologies surged amid the worst disruption to oil and gas supply due to the war in the Middle East.
Exports of all green technologies manufactured in China surged in March and in the first quarter, making Chinese clean energy manufacturers winners in the war-induced oil shock.
China’s exports of lithium batteries soared by 50.4% between January and March, compared to the same quarter of 2025, Wang Jun, deputy director of China’s General Administration of Customs, said at a press briefing on Tuesday.
Exports of electric vehicles also surged, by 77.5% on the year in the first quarter, the official said. Chinese overseas sales of wind turbine parts and equipment jumped by 45.2%, according to official Chinese customs data shared by Wang at the press conference.
China’s lithium battery sales abroad were also helped by manufacturers front-loading shipments to take advantage of higher rebate rates on the export tax. The rate was reduced on April 1 to 6% from 9% previously, and is planned to be eliminated from 2027.
Still, demand for green technology amid the crisis was the key driver of soaring battery, EV, and wind technology exports out of China during the first quarter.
Export growth will likely accelerate in the second quarter, considering the fact that the first quarter included only one month of the Middle East conflict, while countries scramble to replace oil and gas use with clean technology wherever possible amid uncertainties when the Strait of Hormuz will reopen to some kind of normal vessel traffic.
In March alone, Chinese electric vehicle exports soared by 140% to a record high as the fuel price shock drove consumers back to EVs.
China exported as many as 349,000 electric vehicles last month, a record high number of any month ever, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association cited by Bloomberg.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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