China's $18 billion electric-car market at risk. Will the bubble burst?

An iPhone assembler, e-commerce emporium and real-estate developer typically don’t compete in the same business -- except when it comes to electric vehicles in China.

That’s because of a seismic shift toward EVs, which has spurred billions of dollars in investments by traditional carmakers, startups and titans of the internet, electronics and real-estate industries. The rush is on even as the government pulls back on the subsidies that juiced the industry to begin with.

There are now 486 EV manufacturers registered in China, more than triple the number from two years ago. While sales of passenger EVs are projected to