Chinese carmakers BYD, Chery chart 80% growth overseas as EV demand spikes

Lead

Chinese carmakers BYD and Chery Automobile posted sharp increases in overseas vehicle sales in May, with both companies reporting year-on-year gains of about 80 percent as demand for electric and plug-in hybrid models strengthened in key export markets. Figures carried by The Guardian and the South China Morning Post show BYD delivering more than 160,000 vehicles outside China during the month, while Chery recorded 181,571 overseas deliveries. Company executives have framed the results as evidence that international expansion is offsetting softer conditions at home and have restated plans for BYD to become the world’s largest automaker by volume within five years.

The gains come against a backdrop of rising electric-vehicle adoption in Europe, including a 7 percent overall rise in UK car registrations in May and a 232 percent surge in BYD registrations in Germany. BYD has also announced plans to invest nearly £1.8 billion in European charging infrastructure and is preparing to begin assembly at a new plant in Hungary later this year.

Coverage Comparison

Reporting from The Guardian focused heavily on the UK market, where Chinese brands contributed to the strongest May car-sales total since before the Covid-19 pandemic. Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders data cited by the outlet showed registrations climbing 7 percent to 160,662 vehicles, with battery-electric models accounting for more than 27 percent of the market. BYD sold 5,200 cars in the UK in May and doubled its sales over the first five months of the year; Chery, through its Chery, Jaecoo and Omoda brands, sold 8,200 units in the month and saw sales rise fourfold year-to-date. The Guardian linked part of the upturn to government grants introduced the previous July and to higher fuel prices. Industry voices quoted by the paper, including SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes, described a market offering “more choice than ever.”

South China Morning Post coverage emphasised the broader international picture and BYD’s performance in Germany, Europe’s largest auto market. According to Federal Motor Transport Authority data reported by the Post, BYD registrations in Germany jumped 232 percent year-on-year to 6,169 vehicles in May, giving the brand a 2.6 percent share of new-car registrations. Of those, 4,290 were plug-in hybrids, and BYD claimed leadership in that segment with more than 15 percent market share. The Post also detailed Chery’s results, noting that overseas deliveries accounted for 73 percent of the company’s total May volume and that the state-owned maker handed three times as many cars to foreign customers as to domestic ones. Both outlets carried BYD’s overseas sales figure of roughly 160,000 units and the associated 80 percent year-on-year increase, while one South China Morning Post report separately put the company’s overseas deliveries over a two-month period at a 76 percent rise.

Across the reports, executives and analysts attributed the export strength to technological advances in batteries and charging, higher prices achievable outside China, and reduced domestic buyer incentives that have pressured mainland sales. The Guardian and the South China Morning Post both noted BYD’s ambition, voiced by founder and chairman Wang Chuanfu at the company’s annual shareholder meeting in Shenzhen, to overtake Toyota and become the world’s largest carmaker by volume within five years. One South China Morning Post account placed a similar target in the context of 2030. The Guardian additionally reported Stella Li, BYD’s top international executive, stating that production at the Hungarian plant would start in the fourth quarter and that work on a Turkish facility had been paused so the company could concentrate on European Union assembly capacity intended to mitigate tariffs.

Key Claims

• BYD’s overseas sales surpassed 160,000 units in May, representing an approximately 80 percent year-on-year increase, according to figures reported by both The Guardian and the South China Morning Post; one South China Morning Post account separately cited an 81 percent jump to 160,177 units and another referenced a 76 percent rise in overseas deliveries over a longer recent period.
• Chery Automobile’s overseas sales increased 81 percent year-on-year to 181,571 vehicles in May, accounting for 73 percent of its total monthly volume, as reported by the South China Morning Post.
• BYD registrations in Germany rose 232 percent year-on-year to 6,169 vehicles in May, giving the brand a 2.6 percent share of new-car registrations, according to South China Morning Post reporting of Federal Motor Transport Authority data.
• UK car registrations rose 7 percent to 160,662 in May, the strongest May figure since before the pandemic, with BYD sales doubling over the first five months of the year, according to The Guardian citing Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders data.
• BYD aims to become the world’s largest carmaker by volume within five years, a target restated by chairman Wang Chuanfu and carried by both The Guardian and the South China Morning Post.
• BYD plans to spend nearly £1.8 billion in Europe to develop infrastructure for five-minute “flash charging,” as reported by The Guardian.
• Overseas markets now account for more than 41 percent of BYD’s monthly sales, and the company is on track to exceed a 2026 target of 1.5 million vehicles sold outside China, according to South China Morning Post reporting of executive comments.
• Higher electric-vehicle demand and reduced government-funded buyer incentives in China have been cited by analysts and executives, across both outlets, as factors pushing Chinese manufacturers to expand abroad where vehicles often command higher prices.