China set to beat Japan to become No. 1 auto exporter

China is on track to become the world's top automobile exporter on an annual basis for the first time, thanks to bigger footholds in Russia and Mexico and a growing global electric vehicle (EV) industry, Report informs via Nikkei Asia.

China exported 4.41 million autos from January to November, up 58% from the same period last year, according to preliminary data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).

That puts it ahead of former export leader Japan, which saw a 15% rise to 3.99 million autos in the first 11 months of the year. Japan's full-year total is expected to come in at around 4.3 million.

The last time Japan fell from the top spot was in 2016, when it was overtaken by Germany.