European luxury car markets feel the heat

Market share: Visitors inspect a Hongqi E-HS9 luxury car at the 2024 Paris Auto Show. FAW Group’s Hongqi and BYD’s Yangwang aim to compete for European customers against vehicles from Mercedes, Porsche and even Rolls-Royce. — Reuters

BERLIN: Mercedes-Benz Group AG was once a standard-bearer of automotive refinement, but swooning sales and profits underscore how even the lucrative upscale end of the car market is feeling the heat from China.

Manufacturers led by BYD Co have opened a new front in the fight for dominance of the auto industry by redefining “Made in China” as a global symbol of luxury for the electric vehicle (EV) age.