Chinese automakers are making Brazil a major base for investment and a test market for electrification, according to the report. More than 20 Chinese brands now operate in the country. Brazil received 10.9% of nearly US$60 billion in Chinese investment worldwide last year, data from the Brazil-China Business Council show. A former Ford executive described the country as a leading proving ground for China’s automotive industry, citing its consumer market, clean energy and skilled workforce.
BYD is establishing its largest factory in Latin America at the former Ford site in Camaçari, Bahia. The plant opened in October 2025 and has assembled more than 100,000 vehicles using imported kits, while parts of the complex remain under construction. Full production in Brazil is planned for the end of 2026. BYD reports 7,618 direct employees at the site, including 457 foreign workers. GWM has acquired a former Mercedes factory in Rio Grande do Sul, while Geely is working with Renault in São José dos Pinhais, Paraná.
The expanding competition is affecting prices: by June, the average amount paid for a new light vehicle had fallen 3.5% to R$152,100, according to Bright Consulting. The report also describes labor tensions at the BYD site. A July stoppage involved 2,700 workers, and an investigation into harassment allegations closed without finding proof. Separately, 163 Chinese workers were removed from conditions likened to slavery at construction works in 2024. BYD says a December agreement ended the case without a trial and required contractors to pay R$40 million. A local academic urged Brazil to use the investment to build domestic technology rather than replace one external dependency with another.