China Fast-Tracks Auto Standards to Boost Global Competitiveness

New five-year plan also emphasised importance of stronger standards in boosting Chinese manufacturers’ competitiveness

· Strategic Push:

o China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) announced plans to accelerate automotive technical standards over the next five years.

o Goal: Position China as a global rule-setter in next-generation vehicles.

· Five-Year Plan Alignment:

o National blueprint emphasizes stronger standards to consolidate competitiveness.

o Standards expected to drive high-quality development, encourage M&A activity, and phase out outdated production capacity.

· Focus Areas:

o Improved battery cycle life for electric vehicles.

o Integration of artificial intelligence applications in cars.

o Strengthening standards in intelligent connected vehicles and supporting infrastructure.

· Institutional Framework:

o Announcement made during the first meeting of the new National Technical Committee of Auto Standardisation.

o Builds on MIIT’s April 2025 directive targeting “advantageous industries.”

[ABS News Service/18.04.2026]

To sharpen its competitive edge in the world’s next-generation vehicle market, China has pledged to fast track automotive technical standards to build its status as a global rule-setter.

The carmaking powerhouse would drive high-quality development of the auto sector through the formulation and enhancement of core standards during the next five years, officials from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) told state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) in Beijing on Thursday.

The move aligns with the national five-year plan released last month, with the development blueprint explicitly calling for stronger national standards to consolidate China’s competitiveness.

The plan also said that by upgrading industrial benchmarks, Beijing aimed to facilitate market-driven mergers and acquisitions while accelerating the orderly exit of outdated production capacity.

CCTV reported on Thursday that the new standards would raise product quality, such as battery cycle life for electric vehicles, and also spur technical innovation, including artificial intelligence applications for cars.

This push builds on an MIIT directive issued in April last year that called for the strengthening of standards in “advantageous industries”, specifically targeting intelligent connected vehicles and their critical infrastructure.

The ministry officials were speaking at the first meeting of a new National Technical Committee of Auto Standardisation, after the five-year terms of the members of the previous committee expired.