China's BYD expands beyond iPads, to produce EVs in Vietnam

Viet · May 8, 2023

Tesla challenger is among dozens of Apple suppliers in the country

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BYD will manufacture EVs in Vietnam for domestic drivers and for export in Southeast Asia as the Chinese maker challenges U.S. rival Tesla for global dominance. © Reuters
LIEN HOANG, Nikkei staff writerMay 8, 2023 19:35 JST

HO CHI MINH CITY -- Vietnam said China's BYD will make electric vehicles in the Southeast Asian country, where it already produces iPads among a rising number of incoming Apple suppliers.

BYD, which is looking to dethrone Tesla by production volume, will manufacture EVs in Vietnam for domestic drivers and for export in Southeast Asia, the government said late Friday. Chinese rivals like budget-EV maker Wuling are on their way, too.

But other retailers have said tepid demand for Vietnam's VinFast models made them hesitate to invest in the EV market, which is smaller than Thailand's and Indonesia's.

Once Apple opted to assemble iPads outside of China for the first time amid disruption caused by its COVID shutdowns, BYD and Foxconn helped set up supply chains across the border in Vietnam.

The smaller country is becoming a factory hub for Apple products from AirPods to Macbooks. But foreign suppliers say they have had to bring in employees, including from Cambodia, as Vietnam struggles to secure enough engineering skills and local suppliers to graduate beyond basic assembly.

"The expansion of activities from electronic manufacturing to electric car production will be a milestone, laying the foundation for BYD Group's new ideas for cooperation and investment in Vietnam," Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha said in a statement posted on the government's website.

The post summarized his meeting in Hanoi with BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu, saying Vietnam hopes the Warren Buffett-backed company will "create products that are competitive in the international market, targeting high-standard markets, on the basis of Vietnam's advantages in next-generation free trade agreements."