BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s BYD posted a 21% rise in electric vehicle sales in the second quarter, closing the gap with Tesla after handing the title of world’s top EV seller to its U.S. rival in the first quarter.
BYD sold 426,039 EVs in the April-June quarter, according to Reuters calculations based on its monthly sales reports. That’s about 12,000 vehicles less than Tesla’s estimated vehicle deliveries for the second quarter.
Tesla on Tuesday is expected to report a 6% drop in April-June quarter vehicle deliveries, the first time the US company has posted two straight quarters of declines as it deals with tough competition and sluggish demand in China due to shortages. New models at affordable prices.
If actual results are softer than estimated, the company could once again cede its EV championship to BYD, with Barclays forecasting an 11% drop in second-quarter deliveries, Tesla’s biggest.
Tesla’s China-made EV sales fell 24.2% to 71,007 in June, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
Tesla has hit a plateau after years of rapid growth that helped make it the world’s most valuable automaker. It warned in January that delivery growth would be “notably subdued” in 2024, taking a boost from the fall in monthly price cuts.
The EV maker has cut output of its best-selling Model Y electric car by double-digit percent at its Shanghai plant since March to address weak demand for its aging models in China, its second-biggest market after the United States, according to Reuters. Reported in May.
In comparison, its leading Chinese rival BYD maintained steady growth in EV sales, while EV upstarts like the Neo posted stellar growth last quarter. NIO’s vehicle deliveries more than doubled to 57,300 units in the second quarter.
Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the CPCA, said price cuts and a growing shift in consumer demand for EVs and hybrids were the main reasons behind strong sales by Chinese EV makers in recent months.
Sales of new energy vehicles, including EVs and plug-in hybrids, in China accounted for 46.7% of total car sales in May, according to CPCA data.
(Reporting by Qiaoyi Li, Zhang Yan and Kevin Krolicki; Editing by Miyoung Kim and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
