January 28, 2021: BMW, a German automaker, cuts prices for its all-electric iX3 SUV in China, bringing the car close to compete with vehicles from Tesla and Chinese start-ups like Nio.

On Thursday, BMW’s website said the recommended retail price for the iX3 would start at 399,900 yuan ($61,713).

The iX3 would be competing directly in size with the Tesla Model Y & NIO ES6, which both have to start prices substantially less than the iX3 before this cut, said Tu Le, the founder of advisory firm Sino Auto Insights in Beijing. Concludes by denying iX3 to compete.

According to Chinese media reports, the price drop consists of Tesla’s 30% cut to model at the beginning of the year to 339,900 yuan, down from 488,000 yuan.

BMW manufactures the iX3 in China through a joint venture with Brilliance Auto. According to the German automaker, the China-made car is slated to be the first joint venture that will export to other countries.

Global car companies are looking forward to launching their latest electric cars with China.

 China is the world’s largest auto market, and it has the government’s support for the electric vehicle market with subsidies and the rollout of battery charging infrastructure.

According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, sales of new energy vehicles, including plug-in hybrid and pure electric cars, are expected to surge 40% this year to 1.8 million.

According to the association, New energy vehicle sales last year rose 10.9% to 1.367 million vehicles despite the drop in car sales and the coronavirus pandemic.