Skoda has announced its withdrawal from the Chinese market in 2026

Skoda has announced its withdrawal from the Chinese market by mid-2026, unable to compete with local companies. The reason was a sharp decline in demand, according to Reuters.

Skoda debuted in China in 2005, and for many years it was the brand's largest sales market: in the second half of the 2010s, sales exceeded 300,000 vehicles. However, by the end of 2025, the volume of Skoda sales in the local market decreased to only 15 thousand cars.

"The company will continue to sell Skoda models in the Chinese market in cooperation with a regional partner until mid—2026," the company said, noting that it will continue to provide after-sales services for cars in China.

At the same time, Skoda announced plans to focus on strengthening the brand's presence in India and Southeast Asia, where sales showed growth in 2025. Over the past few years, local companies such as BYD and Geely have surpassed Volkswagen in terms of sales, ending its long-term dominance. However, Volkswagen is not going to abandon the market and, for example, in cooperation with the SAIC concern, it is launching sales of new models, including electric cars of the new AUDI brand.

As for the global market, by the end of 2025, Skoda delivered 1.04 million vehicles, which is 12.7% more year-on-year. In Europe, the brand became the third largest in terms of sales.

As Sergey Tselikov, director of the Autostat analytical agency, told in his Telegram channel, in the first two months of 2026 alone, 1,518 new Skoda cars were sold in Russia, delivered to the country using alternative schemes. The brand became the fifth in the ranking in terms of sales among global car brands.

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