Data released on August 20 from a joint report by the Passenger Car Market Information Joint Branch and Kere Consulting shows that China's new energy vehicle market recorded sales of 1.561 million units in July 2026. This represents a 5.0% decline from the previous month but a significant 23.7% increase compared to the same period last year, with the market penetration rate holding steady at a high level of 60.4%.

Within the overall figures, new energy passenger vehicles contributed 1.457 million units in sales, marking a 21.9% year-on-year growth. Meanwhile, the new energy commercial vehicle segment reached 104,000 units sold, surging 56.3% from the prior year's corresponding period.

Examining the market structure for July 2026, new energy sedans accounted for 32.2% of total sales, reflecting a decline of 11.5 percentage points compared to the same month last year. In contrast, new energy SUVs captured a 56.1% share of the market, representing a substantial increase of 9.8 percentage points over the same timeframe.

Looking at advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) installation rates, data from January to June 2026 reveals that L2-level and above assisted driving features were installed on 88.4% of new energy passenger vehicles. Notably, the installation rate in the sub-160,000 RMB price segment continued to climb, driven by growing consumer demand for intelligent driving assistance capabilities.

Regarding specific safety features, the automatic emergency braking (AEB) system demonstrated robust installation rates across the board. From January to June 2026, the overall passenger vehicle AEB installation rate reached 76.6%, climbing to 84.8% for vehicles priced between 160,000 and 240,000 RMB. The new energy passenger vehicle segment showed particularly strong adoption, with AEB installation reaching 83.6%, solidifying its position as a standard component of active safety systems.

The full-speed adaptive cruise control (ACC) function has also gained widespread traction, achieving a 67.0% installation rate across the entire passenger vehicle market and an even higher 79.5% in the new energy passenger vehicle segment. Advances in technology combined with declining costs have positioned ACC as a mainstream standard feature in modern vehicles.

Automatic lane change (ALC) functionality is undergoing a notable transition from a premium offering to a standard configuration. This shift is attributable to continuous improvements in technical solutions and deeper integration of functional systems, making ALC an integral component of contemporary intelligent driving architectures.

Similarly, automatic parking assist (APA) features are experiencing rapid adoption growth as the technology evolves toward greater intelligence, broader availability, and enhanced integration with other vehicle systems.

The report also provides analysis of the newly issued national standard for autonomous driving system safety requirements. This standard establishes five overarching requirements concerning the fundamental capabilities and safety levels of autonomous driving systems, forming the baseline for system design and evaluation. It explicitly defines the minimum capabilities that different autonomous driving functions should possess, with broader operational ranges necessitating coverage of more extensive scenarios.

The standard mandates comprehensive coverage across five major scenario categories, introducing more detailed requirements for existing products. Additionally, it stipulates that system activation and deactivation processes must be executed safely, with clear specifications for status notifications including readiness, activation, and exit states. Vehicle manufacturers are required to maintain structured safety documentation files to demonstrate compliance with the standard's provisions.

Verification of compliance operates through three parallel channels: enterprise self-assurance measures, product documentation review, and confirmatory testing procedures. The standard has been harmonized with United Nations regulations while being tailored to better suit China's specific national conditions, with two phased implementation timelines designed to ensure orderly rollout of the requirements.