China Removes EVs From 2026–2030 Strategic Industries List

China’s latest Five-Year Plan for 2026–2030 has excluded electric vehicles (EVs) from its list of strategic industries for the first time in over a decade, signaling a shift in industrial priorities amid market saturation and overcapacity. The plan instead highlights quantum technology, bio-manufacturing, hydrogen energy, and nuclear fusion as new engines of economic growth.

New energy vehicles (NEVs)—including EVs, plug-in hybrids, and fuel cell vehicles—had been classified as strategic emerging industries in the three previous five-year plans. Successive government initiatives injected billions of dollars in subsidies, helping China become a global leader in EV production and its broader supply chain.

The 15th Five-Year plan, published by Xinhua News Agency, places automobiles alongside housing as sectors where purchase restrictions should be lifted to stimulate consumption, rather than areas for targeted industrial support. “We aim to guide all parties concerned to adopt a sound, rational, and realistic approach in their work and refrain from rushing headlong into new initiatives,” President Xi Jinping said, according to Xinhua.

Earlier in 2025, Xi questioned whether every province should pursue industries such as artificial intelligence, computing power, and electric vehicles, according to the People’s Daily—indicating a broader goal to rationalize investment and reduce regional redundancy.

China’s once rapidly expanding EV market now faces mounting challenges. Overcapacity, a prolonged price war, and excessive competition have created a saturated environment, compounded by deflationary pressures and trade tensions affecting exports. Emerging production hubs such as Hefei and Xi’an have intensified competition as local governments vie for market share.

The full version of the 15th Five-Year Plan is set to be released during the National People’s Congress in March 2026.