China's electric vehicles are around 3-5 years ahead, BYD CEO says

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's electric vehicles are around three to five years ahead of the competition in terms of products, technology and the industrial chain, BYD's (1211.HK, BYDDY) CEO Wang Chuanfu said in an interview with China's national television broadcaster.

Wang was interviewed on Monday after Chinese President Xi Jinping's symposium with some of the biggest names in China's technology sector. Wang was among the business leaders who spoke at the meeting.

China overtook Japan in 2023 as the world's largest auto exporter, but its electric vehicle exports face tariffs from the United States and the European Union, with the EU imposing 17.0% tariff on BYD's EVs.

Wang, in an interview with Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account affiliated with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, said that protectionism does not work for good products. Consumers' approval is motivating the EV maker to "overcome various difficulties", he added.

Separately, complaints about BYD over its move to offer free smart driving features across most of its line-up have flooded a prominent Chinese auto quality platform, many from customers who said they had overpaid for their cars.

The complaints are one of the ripple effects a prolonged price war and hyper competitiveness in the Chinese market are having as automakers slash prices, offer free features or incentives, or roll out new models at a pace faster than other countries.

(Reporting by Xiuhao Chen and Ryan Woo, and Beijing newsroom. Editing by Ed Osmond and Angus MacSwan, and Gerry Doyle.)