A Study on the Competition and Cooperation in the Electric Vehicle Industry among China, Japan, and South Korea

This study compares the electric vehicle (EV) industries in China, Japan, and South Korea across three dimensions: industrial competitiveness, trade network structure, and policy instruments.Using patent data and trade-network analytics, including technology-class indicators and standard measures of network centrality within global value chains, we quantitatively evaluate each country's innovation capacity and position.The findings indicate that China, underpinned by strong and sustained policy support and a large domestic market, has rapidly expanded a full-cycle industrial chain spanning vehicle platforms, battery cells, upstream materials, and charging infrastructure, thereby consolidating system-level advantages.South Korea has leveraged world-class battery technologies and a network of overseas production bases to build a high-value-added, export-oriented configuration focused on Europe and the United States.Japan, while experiencing slower domestic EV uptake, maintains competitive advantages in precision manufacturing, power electronics, and advanced battery materials, which continue to underpin key segments of regional and global supply chains.Despite differentiated strategies and intense competition, the three countries display meaningful complementarities: opportunities for collaboration in battery recycling and second-life applications; cross-border standardization of interfaces, testing, and safety norms; and coordinated mechanisms to enhance supply-chain resilience and risk management.By integrating patent-based innovation metrics with trade-network evidence, this study offers empirical insights to inform the design of regional cooperation pathways and the coordination of industrial and trade policies that can collectively enhance efficiency, sustainability, and technological leadership in the East Asian EV ecosystem.