Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD closes in on Tesla as sales rise

Chinese automaker BYD saw a surge in sales late last year, leaving it closer to claiming the title of the world’s best-selling electric vehicle (EV) maker in 2024.

The company says it sold 207,734 electric vehicles in December, bringing its annual total to 1.76 million, as subsidies and discounts helped attract customers.

It comes as Tesla is scheduled to announce its own quarterly sales figures later on Thursday.

The American electric car maker maintained a slight lead in EV sales over BYD in the previous quarter, but the Shenzhen-based company has been narrowing the gap.

BYD’s total vehicle sales increased more than 41% in 2024, year-over-year. The increase was mainly driven by sales of its hybrid cars.

The company has benefited from a surge in auto sales in its home market, as intense competition drove down prices and government subsidies encouraged consumers to replace their old cars with electric vehicles or other more fuel-efficient options. fuel consumption.

BYD sells 90% of its cars in China, where it has been expanding its lead over foreign brands such as Volkswagen and Toyota.

The rise of BYD and other Chinese electric vehicle makers contrasts with the challenges faced by some traditional automakers, which have been struggling in major Western markets.

last month, Honda and Nissan confirmed they were in talks to mergeas the two Japanese companies try to fight off competition from the Chinese auto industry.

Also in December, Volkswagen announced that it had reached an agreement with the IG Metall union which will avoid plant closures in Germany and avoid immediate forced layoffs.

The German auto industry giant had previously warned it may have to close plants in the country for the first time in a bid to cut costs.

At the beginning of the month, The head of car giant Stellantis, Carlos Tavares, has resigned with immediate effect. after a clash in the boardroom.

His abrupt departure from the company, which owns brands including Vauxhall, Jeep, Fiat, Peugeot and Chrysler, came two months after Stellantis issued a profit warning.

In the third quarter of 2024, BYD saw its revenue soar. surpassing Tesla for the first time.

It posted more than 200 billion yuan ($28.2 billion, £21.8 billion) in revenue between July and September, a 24% increase from the same period last year, and more than Elon Musk’s company, whose Quarterly revenues were $25.2 billion.

However, Tesla still sold more electric vehicles (EV) than BYD.