China’s Auto Sales Gain Momentum in July as Overseas Markets Drive Growth

(Yicai) Aug. 4 -- Several Chinese automakers, including Chery Group and BYD, reported higher sales in July, buoyed by strong demand overseas, while Leapmotor Technology became the first Chinese electric vehicle startup to achieve monthly sales of more than 100,000 units.

July is traditionally a slow season for sales, with consumers adopting a wait-and-see approach, leading to an extended replacement cycle among households and subdued demand for new cars, according to the China Passenger Car Association.

However, new energy vehicles showed greater resilience than fuel-powered cars, supported by product upgrades, policy incentives and competitive pricing, the association said. As China's NEV industry gains scale advantages and expands into global markets, more Chinese-made electric car brands are entering international markets and gaining wider recognition.

Export Boom

BYD Group shipped 419,211 vehicles in July, representing a jump of 21.7 percent from the year before and an increase of 3.9 percent from the previous month. Of this, NEV exports reached 180,538, accounting for over 40 percent of monthly sales.

SAIC Motor sold 338,600 units last month, a slight year-on-year increase of 0.3 percent. Sales from exports and overseas production bases surged 72.5 percent to 141,700 units. Cumulative overseas sales this year soared 52.1 percent from a year earlier to 876,300 autos.

Chery’s auto sales soared 23.3 percent last month from the same period last year to 276,800 vehicles. Exports surged 70.1 percent to 202,500 units, making the Wuhu-based firm the first Chinese automaker to export over 200,000 vehicles in a single month. In the first seven months, Chery's cumulative exports jumped 71.2 percent year on year to 1,146,400 units.

Geely Auto Group, including Geely, Zeekr and Lynk & Co., sold 250,200 vehicles in July, a gain of 5.2 percent from the year before. Exports tripled from a year ago to 106,700 units, with NEV exports soaring more than seven-fold, accounting for nearly 60 percent of total exports.

Changan Automobile delivered 207,100 autos last month, with overseas deliveries rising year on year for the sixth consecutive month. Its Deepal brand logged a 7.5 percent jump in global sales from the year before to 29,200 units, while overseas sales soared 22.8 percent from the previous month.

Great Wall Motor’s sales climbed 3.5 percent in July year on year to 108,100 autos. Overseas sales reached 62,000 units, accounting for more than half of total sales.

Among Chinese EV startups, Leapmotor’s global deliveries doubled last month from the year before to 101,267 vehicles, making the Hangzhou-based firm the first EV startup in China to sell over 100,000 units in a single month.

Mixed Results

Other EV makers reported mixed results in July. Harmony lntelligent Mobility Alliance, the smart vehicle alliance backed by tech giant Huawei Technologies, delivered 45,000 vehicles, down 6 percent year on year. Xpeng delivered 38,000 vehicles, an increase of approximately 4 percent, while Nio shipped 35,900 autos, a jump of 71 percent.

GAC Group's Hyptec & Aion business unit sold 35,000 vehicles, marking a year-on-year increase of 31.7 percent. Li Auto delivered 30,500 vehicles, a slight drop of 0.9 percent. Xiaomi Auto shipped more than 30,000 vehicles for the month but did not disclose an exact figure.

Beijing Electric Vehicle delivered 25,100 vehicles in total, including 23,500 Arcfox cars, a jump of 150.4 percent year on year. Voyah delivered 13,200 autos, a drop of 7.3 percent from the previous month.

Editor: Kim Taylor