French suppliers Forvia and Valeo posted declines in China revenue last year as their traditional customers lost ground to local rivals amid the market’s fast pivot to electrified vehicles.

Forvia sales in China dipped 3.4 percent year over year to below €5.7 billion ($5.9 billion) in 2024, according to the company’s 2024 financial report released Feb. 28.

The amount accounted for 21 percent of its global sales revenue, a drop of 0.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the report.

The French supplier blamed an “unfavorable customer mix” and “delayed SOPs (start of production)” for the decrease in China sales revenue. It didn’t reveal what projects experienced delays.

In 2024, Forvia derived 48 percent of its China sales revenue from local automakers, according to its financial report.

Specifically, the company’s 2024 sales to BYD, China’s largest electrified-vehicle maker, dropped 2.7 percent from a year earlier to €1.1 billion.

Its sales to all other Chinese brands edged down 0.8 percent to €1.6 billion.

Forvia didn’t provide a breakdown of its 2024 China sales to Western automakers producing locally.

Forvia was created in 2022 after French supplier Faurecia took over its German peer Hella. Before 2024, its sales revenue from China had maintained robust growth.

Valeo sees an 8.1 percent decline in 2024

Valeo’s equipment sales, the company’s main business, fell for the second straight year in China, slipping 8.1 percent year over year to below €2.7 billion in 2024, according to financial results released Feb. 27.

The number was 15 percent of its global equipment sales revenue in 2024, 0.6 percent lower than 2023.

In 2024, local automakers contributed half of its equipment sales revenue in China, Valeo said.

“Against a backdrop of faster growth for new-energy vehicles and market share gains by Chinese automakers,” Valeo is continuing to “reposition its customer portfolio” accordingly, the supplier said.

Valeo didn’t disclose sales revenue generated by its aftermarket and other businesses in China last year.

Chinese light-vehicle makers continued to gain market share from their global rivals in 2024, largely on EV demand. Their share in vehicle shipments industrywide grew by 9 percent from a year earlier to 65 percent, according to data the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers released in January.