NIO sold 31,305 battery-electric vehicles in August, a 55% increase year over year.
Demand for battery-electric vehicles remains strong in China, but a rising tide no longer lifts every ship. Profitability, meanwhile, continues to be a challenge amid a fierce price war.
Chinese EV leader BYD released its August sales figures Monday morning. It sold 371,501 passenger cars in August, up less than 1% year over year. Sales of battery-electric models, however, surged 34% to 199,585 units. Plug-in hybrid sales declined 23% to 171,916 vehicles.
So far this year, BYD has sold 1.40 million battery-electric cars, up 39% year over year, and 1.42 million plug-in hybrids, up 8% year over year. In 2024, the growth rates were reversed. BYD sold 2.49 million plug-in hybrids, up 73% year over year. Battery-electric car sales, at 1.76 million, trailed behind, rising 12%.
Battery-electric sales now account for roughly one-third of all new vehicle sales in China, up from about 25% a year ago, according to data tracked by Citi analyst Jeff Chung.
More competition, however, means not everyone is expanding. Li Auto delivered 28,529 vehicles in August, down 41% year over year. Chung described Li’s results as a “slight miss” against expectations in a Monday report. Li shares were up 0.4% in Hong Kong trading on Monday.
NIO reported August sales of 31,305 cars, up 55% year over year. XPeng sold 37,709 vehicles in August, up 169% year over year. Chung said both results were in line with expectations.
NIO shares rose 4.6% in Hong Kong trading. XPeng shares fell 1%. Entering Monday trading, XPeng stock was up about 80% so far this year. NIO stock was up about 45% year to date. Li shares were down slightly so far in 2025.
BYD shares slid 5.2% in overseas trading on Monday. The company also released first-half 2025 financial highlights over the weekend. Increased competition has also driven down EV prices and squeezed profits.
BYD earned roughly $900 million in the second quarter, missing Wall Street forecasts of about $1.4 billion. Net profit per car fell to about $700 from first-quarter levels near $1,200, Chung wrote. “Price cut[s] didn’t help to improve first-half 2025 volume enough,” he added.
Tesla doesn’t disclose monthly deliveries or regional breakdowns, leaving investors to rely on industry data for timely insights. It has struggled to grow sales in China this year.
Through July, Tesla sold about 309,000 battery-electric cars in China, down roughly 5% year over year. In July, Tesla’s Chinese EV market share was about 4%, down roughly one percentage point year over year. Tesla has had trouble growing car sales across regions recently. Global sales in the first half of 2025 fell about 13% year over year.
Lower sales have translated into lower profits for Tesla as well. In the first half of 2025, it reported operating profit of about $1.3 billion, down from about $2.8 billion in the same period of 2024.
Entering Monday trading, Tesla shares were down about 17% year to date, but up about 56% year over year. Despite weaker sales, investors have been impressed with Tesla’s AI initiatives. Tesla rolled out a small fleet of AI-trained robo-taxis in Austin, Texas, in June.
Write to Al Root at [email protected]
See also: GST Council Proposes 5% Electric Vehicle Tax in Major Reform
Auto and lifestyle writer who loves simplifying complex topics into easy-to-understand insights.
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