Chinese Manufacturers Are Finishing off russia’s Automotive Industry

russian truck manufacturers have lost the battle for the russian domestic market to Chinese imports within just a few years. After Europeans left the russian market in 2022, Chinese brands instantly took over the heavy equipment niche. The russians’ hopes for “fruitful cooperation” turned into a loss of the domestic market – the Chinese already control over 53 % of sales.

In russia, sales of domestically produced trucks fell by 19 % in 2024 and plummeted by 56  % in the first half of 2025, with a 70 % decline in the long-haul truck segment.

The lack of demand for russian equipment forced leading truck and bus manufacturers –Kamaz, GAZ, and PAZ – to reduce the working week to four days or completely stop the assembly line.

The situation on the russian truck market has affected cooperation with “friendly” belarus in this segment. Automobile manufacturers from the rb complain that they are being “pushed out” of russia – in the first half of 2025, MAZ’s sales on the russian market decreased by 34 %.