Plenty of room for cooperation between China, Japan in auto industry: researcher

TOKYO, June 19 (Xinhua) -- There is a lot of room for cooperation between China and Japan in the process of developing and expanding the electric vehicle (EV) industry, said Tang Jin, a senior research officer at Japan's Mizuho Bank.

The penetration rate of EVs in China has broken through the tipping point, and the next question is how EVs will compete with fuel vehicles, how fast the speed of electrification will be, and how many years it will take to fully achieve electrification, Tang told Xinhua in an interview.

In his view, the development of China's EVs has strong momentum. In the future, they can be honed and improved through competition and become the mainstream, as well as play a greater role in leading the development of the world's automobile electrification.

Tang said that Japanese suppliers have accumulated rich experience in the fields of materials, equipment and components through long-term basic research, adding that China and Japan are obviously complementary in these fields, and there is a lot of room for cooperation.

"To build a first-class electric vehicle brand and win in the competition, Chinese auto companies need a first-class industrial chain. And there are many areas where China and Japan can win together," said the researcher.

Tang believes that on the way for China's EVs to go global, China and Japan can learn from each other through technology cooperation, capital cooperation, overseas cooperation and other forms.

Regarding the recovery prospects of the global auto market, Tang said that power of consumption is still an important factor affecting the recovery of the market. He estimated that the auto market will continue to pick up this year, and some consumer demand in developed countries will be released, but it will take some time to recover to the pre-pandemic level.