The Q1 has ended amidst discussions about the Xiaomi SU7 launch, Tesla's price hike, and lower-than-expected sales. According to CPCA statistics, new energy vehicle retail sales in Q1 reached 1.758 million units with a YoY growth of 34%, maintaining its lead in the market.
The differentiation between brand sales levels participating in the new energy market becomes more apparent as it experiences a positive trend.
Tesla reported its lowest quarterly sales in nearly a year, with 386,000 vehicles sold in the first quarter. In response to doubts from external sources, Elon Musk, Tesla's founder and CEO, acknowledged the challenges faced by everyone during this period. He also highlighted BYD's sales drop of 42% compared to the previous quarter.
However, this performance is enough to keep Tesla and BYD at the forefront of the new energy market. On the other hand, GAC Aion achieved a decent "report card" with sales of 74,000 vehicles. In the tug-of-war between Li Auto and AITO, the latter emerged as the winner by a narrow margin; both are equally sought after by others.
Afterward, selling 10,000 vehicles monthly became a turning point. Deepal, Leapmotor, Zeekr, and NIO all have quarterly sales ranging from 30,000 to 40,000 vehicles. Xpeng and NETA Automobile have quarterly sales ranging from 21,000 to 24,000 vehicles.
BYD continues to be champion
In March, BYD achieved explosive growth with a monthly sales record of 300,245 vehicles, an increase of approximately 100,000 vehicles compared to the same period last year. First-quarter sales reached 626,300 vehicles, showing a significant decline from the previous quarter's sales of 945,000 vehicles but still marking a year-on-year increase of 13.44%.
PHOTO CREDIT:BYD
Although BYD released new technology in February, BYD still has several factors to maintain its annual sales. For example, the fifth-generation DM technology can increase hybrid models' overall range to over 2000km. The industry believes that new technology-equipped models will also be launched this year. Additionally, some BYD models like Tang have not yet reached their lowest price, indicating the potential for further price reductions to boost sales.
Among traditional car companies' new energy brands, AION delivered 32,500 vehicles in March and a total of 74,100 vehicles in the first quarter. However, Deepal, Zeekr, Voyah, AVATR and other brands failed to surpass 50,000 vehicle deliveries for the quarter.
AITO remains the sales champion, Li Auto lower its expectations
During the new power, most car companies have overcome sluggish February sales due to the holiday and achieved varying degrees of year-on-year growth.
Because Huawei has boosted AITO's brand appeal, leading to increased sales. In March, AITO sold a total of 31,727 new vehicles, marking a 33% increase compared to February and maintaining its position as the top-selling new energy vehicle brand in China. The flagship model New M7 accounted for the majority of sales with 24,598 deliveries in March and a cumulative delivery volume of 74,330 this year. Additionally, the high-end model M9 recorded its first delivery data with 6,243 units delivered in March.
After Li Auto released its new MEGA model, the initiation of Matrix-structured organization 2.0 has led to adjustments in the delivery volume for the first quarter, resulting in a reduction of the original target from 76,000-78,000 vehicles to 52,000-53,000 vehicles. According to current data, the number of new car deliveries in March was 28,984, a year-on-year increase of 39.2%. In the first quarter, total deliveries reached 8,400. As of March 31st, Li Auto has accumulated a total delivery volume of 713 ,764 vehicles and is optimistic about exceeding one million units this year. Li Auto must be more cautious about releasing Li L6 model and EV model.
After Li Auto, Leapmotor delivered 14,567 new cars in March, with a year-on-year growth of over 136% and a month-on-month growth of 121.86%. In the first quarter, they delivered a total of 33,400 vehicles, marking an increase of 217.92% compared to the same period last year. Leapmotor stated that the launch of C10 in early March and the upcoming delivery of the all-new C11 and all-new C01 in Q2 will gradually show their impact.
Xpeng and NIO had a pretty disappointing performance in March, especially Xpeng. They only managed to sell 9,026 units, with the X9 model accounting for 3,946 of those deliveries. Despite having a wide range of products available, Xpeng doesn't really have any models that are super popular. The best-selling one is the X9, which is a pure electric mid-to-large-sized MPV. The previously highly anticipated G6 only enjoyed popularity for about six months before its sales dropped to around 3,000 units - way below expectations.
Recently, NETA has been struggling with lackluster sales, being the only emerging car manufacturer to experience a year-on-year decline in March and ranking last in terms of delivery volume. In March, NETA delivered 8,317 vehicles, marking a 17.55% decrease compared to the same period last year. Cumulative deliveries for the first quarter reached 24,400 vehicles, reflecting a 6.65% year-on-year decrease.
The NETA is currently undergoing renovation and expansion at its production base in Tongxiang, Zhejiang province, which may affect production volume in March and April. Production capacity is expected to gradually recover by late April. Additionally, NETA will launch the NETA L, a mid-size SUV with two power options: pure electric and extended range versions, which could boost sales.
The Xiaomi SU7 is an undeniable standout in the first quarter of the automotive market. Despite whether Xiaomi's car has redefined 'full order', 100,000 pre-orders are still impressive, and a third-party report indicating a 40% lock-in rate is already high. Test drives, store visits, and deliveries of the Founder's Edition have generated significant buzz for Xiaomi's car. With only 59 nationwide stores, the delivery of Xiaomi's car marks the beginning of the second quarter along with the launch of Li L6 in April. Combined with more new product releases, there is suspense surrounding changes in Q2's retail market for new energy vehicles.
Translator:Wei Xiong
Reviser:Yan Luo
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