Chinese automaker BYD Co Ltd’s all-electric vehicle sales more than doubled in May and the company sold nearly thrice as many electric vehicles as its closest rivalNio Inc during the month amid chip supply chain constraints that have roiled global auto production.
What Happened:BYD, backed by Berkshire Hathaway Inc(NYSE:BRK-A) (NYSE:BRK-B) Chairman Warren Buffett, sold 18,711 battery-powered electric vehicles in May, a 126% jump year-on-year, compared with Nio’s delivery of 6,711 electric vehicles during the month.
On a year-to-date basis, BYD’s battery-powered electric vehicle sales more than doubled YoY to 73,424 vehicles, a jump of about 102%.
In comparison, Nio has delivered 33,873 vehicles this year, as of May.
In the New Energy Vehicle (NEV) category, which includes hybrids, BYD scored 32,800 vehicle sales in May, a jump of nearly 190%.
The Chinese government uses the term NEV to define plug-in electric vehicles eligible for public subsidies, and also includes plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and fuel cell electric vehicles besides the battery electric vehicles (BEVs). These could be cars, buses, trucks, or two-wheelers.
BYD’s NEV portfolio consists of cars, buses, and trucks.
Why It Matters:The BYD EV sales beat the combined delivery numbers posted by three of China's most popular EV-centric startups — Nio, Li Auto Inc and XPeng Inc .
Li reported deliveries of 4,323 in May, a climb of 101% from last year. Xpeng said its May deliveries totaled 5,686, which represented 483% year-over-year growth.
Tesla Inc is yet to report its May delivery numbers, although it doesn't give a country-wise breakdown. According to a report byThe Informationlast week, the electric vehicle’s orders in China nearly halved in May from April.
However, orders placed may not immediately reflect actual sales numbers or deliveries.
Price Action: OTC shares of BYD closed 1.16% lower at $49.44 on Monday. Those of Nio closed 4.15% higher at $43.68, Li Auto closed 4.06% higher at $26.68 and Xpeng closed 3.37% higher at $38.36.