BYD Sets New Sales Record Amidst China’s EV Market Slowdown

In August, Chinese electric vehicle (EV) giant BYD achieved a new sales milestone, selling 370,854 passenger vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase. This growth was largely driven by a 48% surge in hybrid vehicle sales, now accounting for nearly two-thirds of the company's total sales. 

Despite broader market challenges, BYD's battery-only car sales also grew by nearly 12%. These figures confirm BYD’s robust performance in a slowing market where several competitors faced declines.

Other Chinese EV makers struggled. Li Auto, known for its range-extender vehicles, saw its deliveries drop to 48,122 units in August, down from July’s record 51,000. Aito, another player leveraging Huawei technology, reported a significant decrease, delivering 31,216 vehicles—a decline of over 10,000 units from the previous month.

Meanwhile, Nio's deliveries slightly dipped to 20,176 in August, yet remained above 20,000 for the fourth consecutive month. Nio is also expanding its market reach with its lower-priced Onvo brand, which recently opened 105 stores. Xpeng, despite reporting its best month of the year with 14,036 deliveries, remains under pressure as it begins deliveries of its new Mona M03 electric car, priced at under $20,000. 

BYD’s international sales continue to grow, with 31,451 cars sold overseas in August, bringing the year-to-date total to 264,869. If this pace continues, BYD is on track to sell nearly 400,000 cars outside China by year-end. The company is now a serious rival to Tesla’s EV dominance, even though its competitors are critical of the heavy subsidies it and other Chinese EV makers enjoy.