February brought the year’s seasonal low: 7,435 new-energy heavy trucks, 26.16% penetration — the year’s lowest share, in line with Chinese New Year seasonality. The broader market context from CAAM (released 26 March): 78,900 heavy trucks sold overall, +14.3% year-on-year; cumulative Jan–Feb exports reached 25,100 units, +22.7%, with Russia absorbing 28% on new KD assembly orders from Shaanxi Automobile, Foton Auman and Hongyan.

Two under-noticed signals in the February data. First, the NEV dip was shallower than the diesel seasonality — penetration held above 26% even in the weakest month, versus 16.96% in February 2025. Second, the export composition: Russia’s 28% share shows China’s heavy-truck export machine diversifying exactly as European entry programmes (SANY, XCMG homologation, the BYD Hungary plant) ramp up. The industry’s export engine (~35% growth through mid-2026) was already visible here.

For Europe: February confirmed that Chinese volume is not contingent on any single export market — and that the KD-assembly model (build kits abroad, assemble locally) is how Chinese OEMs will eventually approach European localisation too. Watch that space; BYD’s Hungary plant and SuperPanther’s Austrian assembly are its European beachheads.