ZXMoto targets global motorbike market after race win

Chinese motorcycle maker ZXMoto is pushing for global growth after a March race victory helped lift orders and attention for the two-year-old company.

ZXMoto won at the Supersport World Championship in March, and the company has since doubled its workforce. Its factory in Chongqing runs 24 hours a day, but customers still face waits of months for orders.

The firm's flagship 133-horsepower 820RR motorcycle sells for about 43,000 yuan, or $6,370, in China. That is at least 30 percent cheaper than foreign rivals, according to the company.

ZXMoto says sales have risen from 25,000 bikes in 2025 to a projected 100,000 this year, with plans to double that figure by 2027. Founder Zhang Xue said Chinese brands must look abroad, saying their future "has to be global".

The expansion comes as China's domestic motorcycle market weakens. Motorcycle sales in China fell 3.4 percent in 2025 and have slid again this year, while consumers increasingly choose cars or less regulated electric bikes.

Half of the 22 million motorcycles produced in China last year were exported. Zhang hopes to export 40,000 bikes to Europe in 2027, while rival manufacturer Shineray sells 90 percent of its low-end models to South America, Southeast Asia and Africa.

Bill Russo, an expert in China's automotive industry, said Chinese motorcycle companies are emerging from a highly competitive industrial ecosystem, but said established Japanese and European manufacturers still have advantages in heritage, racing history and brand prestige.

ZXMoto expects to sell most of its production overseas within five years. With an 800-million-yuan factory due to open in late 2027, the company says it is on track to become one of the world's top 10 motorcycle brands by 2034.