China’s BYD overtook Honda Motor and Nissan Motor in car sales between April and June 2024. Since beating the Japanese automakers, BYD has become the 7th largest automaker worldwide.
BYD’s new vehicle sales grew 40% to 980,000 units in the second quarter. The Chinese automaker’s international sales contributed heavily to its quarterly success. According to Nikkei Asia, BYD tripled its overseas vehicle sales in the year by 105,000 units.
The Chinese car manufacturer is steadily working its way up the ranks. In Q2 2023, BYD ranked 10th worldwide after selling 700,000 units.
According to Marklines, demand for BYD’s affordable electric vehicles (EVs) has helped it beat Japanese legacy automakers like Honda and Nissan. BYD’s domestic sales have also significantly contributed to the company’s rise. In June 2024 alone, it saw a 35% increase in sales.
Toyota still reigns supreme, with 2.63 million vehicles sold in Q2 2024. The United States’ “Big 3” automakers—General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis—also rank above BYD. However, BYD and other Chinese automakers are slowly climbing up the rankings. For instance, between April and June, Geely and Chery Automobile ranked in the top 20 in global sales.
The main obstacle Chinese automakers face now are tariffs. The United States has increased tariffs on China-made EV imports to 100%. Canada is considering similar tariff rates on EV imports from China.
However, China seems hyper-focused on Europe, which has imposed provisional tariffs on its EV imports. Compared to the tariffs imposed in North America, the EU’s duty rates on Chinese EV imports are low. In fact, the European Commission recently lowered its provision tariffs on EV imports from China to 36.3%.
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