China EV and plug in hybrid sales jump in January, BYD trounces Tesla

The sale of new energy vehicle (NEV) passenger cars – full battery electric and plug in hybrid vehicles – in China were up 17 per cent in January, compared to the same month a year earlier, and accounted for 42.42 per cent of the market.

The sales numbers, released late last week by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), and translated by CnEVPost, showed that retail sale of NEV passenger cars totalled 786,000 in China for January. This was sharply down from December, but reflect seasonal variations, and the Chinese New year holiday period..

The overall NEV sales numbers were reflected relatively closely across individual car brands in China, virtually all of which saw sales increase year-on-year, but drop compared to December.

Leading Chinese NEV carmaker BYD sold 300,538 NEVs in January, up an impressive 49.16 per cent on January 2024. In comparison, Tesla only sold 63,238 EVs in January, in the same vicinity as other big name Chinese carmakers including Geely, Changan, and Chery.

Among BYD’s more commonly known peers, Xpeng delivered 30,350 NEV units in January – a huge 267.88 per cent increase from January 2024; Li Auto delivered 29,927 units, down 48.85 per cent month-to-month; Leapmotor delivered 25,170 vehicles, up 105.02 per cent from January; Nio delivered 13,863 units, up 38 per cent from January, and Zeekr delivered only 11,942 units, down 4.75 per cent from January.