China's shift toward new energy vehicles (NEVs) gathered pace in October, with NEVs making up nearly two out of every three new vehicles sold, industry data showed Wednesday.

NEVs accounted for 64.3 percent of new car sales last month, up from 61.6 percent in September, while the cumulative share for the first 10 months climbed to 54.8 percent, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).

Exports of NEVs surged about 140 percent year on year to 606,000 units in October, accounting for more than half of China's auto exports for a fifth consecutive month.

NEVs, which include battery electric, plug-in hybrid and fuel-cell vehicles, recorded output and sales of about 2.02 million and 1.94 million units, respectively, in October, both up more than 13 percent year on year.

Among NEV passenger cars, models priced between 100,000 yuan (about 14,883 U.S. dollars) and 150,000 yuan formed the largest sales bracket in the January-October period. Sales in this price range increased 14.5 percent year on year to almost 3.14 million units, CAAM data showed.

The shift toward new energy also extended to commercial vehicles, including trucks and buses. NEVs accounted for 51.9 percent of domestic commercial vehicle sales in October, with domestic sales of such vehicles rising 36 percent year on year to 112,000 units.

On the export side, China's total vehicle exports rose 60.2 percent year on year to nearly 1.07 million units in October, remaining above the 1-million mark for a fifth consecutive month.

In the first 10 months, NEV exports increased 130 percent to 4.61 million units, already exceeding the 2.615 million shipped overseas in the whole of 2025.

Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, told China Securities Journal on Tuesday that global electrification, high oil prices, expanding markets in developing economies and the growing competitiveness of Chinese vehicles were supporting export growth. He also highlighted China's comprehensive NEV supply chain, rapid product development and plug-in hybrid models suited to different driving needs.

The export surge comes as China prepares to lower tax rebates for NEVs. The Ministry of Finance and the State Taxation Administration announced in October that the value-added tax export rebate rate for these vehicles will fall from 13 percent to 9 percent on April 1, 2027.

While the lower rebate would raise export costs in the short term, particularly for models with thin profit margins, Cui said in a separate article that the industry's export growth was underpinned by its supply chains and technological capabilities rather than tax incentives.

He said the adjustment would encourage automakers to move away from disorderly low-price competition, develop higher-value products and deepen local operations overseas, helping shift their global expansion from volume growth toward higher-quality development.