According to Bernstein, Chinese electric vehicle (EV) makers are making inroads in Europe and could take market share from established U.S. and local brands. The investment bank said seven global automakers are well-positioned in this scenario to either take advantage of the transition or compete with Asian rivals. Over the past two decades, European brands have ceded 20 percent of the market to Japanese and Korean automakers, according to IHS. More recently, Tesla has also demonstrated its ability to capture large volumes of sales quickly with its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles. Using what it called conservative estimates, Bernstein predicted that Chinese automakers would have less than 5 percent of the market by 2030. However, “their good value-for-money products and smart entry strategies could lead to faster growth. In an accelerated scenario, incumbents could lose out with both Tesla and Chinese brands taking significant market share” up to 20 percent,” the bank’s analysts wrote. “Weaker players will come under more pressure, but no European mass-market brand will be immune.” U.S. automaker Tesla has captured a sizable share of the European EV market so far, largely due to That has come at the expense of Japanese manufacturers and U.S. rivals, which have lagged European counterparts in rolling out EV models. With the above in mind, the investment bank rates the following seven auto stocks as outperform: Bernstein expects Renault shares to rise 75% in the next 12 months, reversing the steep decline of the past three months. The investment bank said the French automaker’s shares have underperformed recently due to an inability to capture electric vehicle sales. “This may be a function of the electric vehicle market’s initial bias toward more expensive and larger models, which will naturally lead to higher prices for premium OEMs,” Berstein analyst Daniel Roeska said in a June 1 note to clients. share.” Bernstein also expects shares of Volvo Cars and its Chinese parent Geely to rise 34 percent and 53 percent next year, respectively. While Chinese-owned European brands such as MG, Volvo and Polestar currently account for 8 percent of the region’s EV market, long-term dominance can only be maintained through local production, Roeska noted. That means the next two years will be crucial for Chinese companies as they announce plans to manufacture in Europe, which may not begin until the end of the decade. This would allow Chinese companies to avoid import tariffs and compete on pricing, while building brand recognition and local expertise, the analyst said. Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin’s performance in the premium segment is also expected to do well over the next 12 months, according to Bernstein.