China is urging its electric vehicle industry to stop cutting prices and rein in production amid fears that persistent deflation is imperiling economic growth.

In recent months Chinese officials have talked repeatedly of the need to combat “involution” in sectors suffering from overcapacity, such as EVs, referring to the phenomenon of investing more effort and money for diminishing returns.

Xi Jinping has spoken of the problem directly. In an unusually blunt speech this month, China’s president criticised provincial governments for blindly overinvesting in artificial intelligence, in computing power and in new energy vehicles, industries that Beijing has identified as strategic priorities but which are also at risk of overheating.