Nio value surges past GM as electric vehicle sales double

Nio, a pioneer in China’s premium smart electric vehicle market, announced this week that it had doubled sales in October, leading to a surge in the company’s shares that now has it valued at more than American car giant General Motors.

Nio announced it had delivered 5,055 vehicles in October, a new monthly record and an increase of 100.1% against the same month a year earlier.

October deliveries consisted of 2,695 of the company’s ES6s, Nio’s 5-seater high-performance premium smart electric SUV; 1,477 of its ES8s, Nio’s flagship premium 6-seater and 7-seater smart electric SUV; and 883 of its EC6s, the company’s 5-seater premium electric coupe SUV.

Similarly, the company announced that deliveries so far in 2020 had reached 31,430, an increase of 111.4% year-over-year.

Cumulative deliveries of the company’s ES8, ES6, and EC6 as of October 31 have apparently reached 63,343.

News of the company’s delivery performance has led into several days of increased performance on the New York Stock Exchange, with shares jumping 9% on Monday, 6.5% on Tuesday, and continuing to grow.

Nio is now worth $US57.69 billion ($A79.44 billion) by market cap, more than General Motors which sits at $US53.15 billion ($A73.19 billion).

Analysts are split, however, as to what is driving the company’s most recent stock market growth.

Shares of Nio are reportedly up 948% over the last six months (in August it became the most traded stock in Australia as investors seemed to seek to emulate Tesla profits), but the last few days have seemingly revolved around three separate bumps to the company’s profile – led, in part, by its record October.

At the same time, a group of Chinese EV companies have all seen stock market growth, seemingly in line with the US election – which also pushed Tesla and Nikola shares up.

Unconfirmed reports that Nio is also looking at entering Europe with its ES6 and ES8 models were also highlighted as a possible catalyst for the company’s most recent stock growth.

Occasionally described as a Tesla rival – or even a Tesla killer depending on whom you are talking to – Nio’s big claim to fame that sets it apart from the Californian EV darling is its pioneering battery swapping technology, for which it already has 1,200 patents.

Nio’s optional “battery-as-a-service” (BaaS) option allows drivers to defray the cost of buying a new and stylish EV by signing up for a monthly fee of RMB 980 (about $A198) that includes a 70kWh battery. According to a report in August, Nio’s BaaS option provides drivers with a RMB 70,000 ($A14,500) discount off the sticker price.