China’s April sales statistics show YoY growth by a third

Manufacturers producing in China sold around 850,000 electric cars and plug-in hybrids in April. Although this is slightly less than in March, a third more plug-in vehicles were sold than a year ago. The electric share of all vehicles sold in China climbed to around 36 per cent in April.

According to data published by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), 33,000 fewer electric cars and plug-in hybrids were sold in April than in March (-3.7 per cent), but 214,000 more than in the same month last year (+33.6 per cent). Sales of all-electric cars in China in April totalled around 519,000 units and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) around 331,000 vehicles. A total of 2,359,000 vehicles were sold in China in April. The share of NEVs (new energy vehicles) was therefore around 36 per cent. In March, the NEV share was 32.8 per cent and has now risen. It is important to note here: The CAAM figures are wholesale sales, which include both sales in China and exports to foreign markets.

BYD was once again by far the manufacturer with the most NEV sales. The company sold 313,245 new energy vehicles (NEVs) in April, 49 per cent more than in the same month last year (210,295) and 3.6 per cent more than in March 2024 (302,459). Of the units sold, 134,465 were purely electric and 177,583 were PHEVs. As is well known, China’s largest manufacturer of externally chargeable vehicles said goodbye to combustion engine production in March 2022 and has since focussed purely on the production of plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles (BEVs).

Tesla sold significantly fewer vehicles manufactured in China in April, falling back to the level of February when Chinese New Year sales were depressed. The US electric vehicle manufacturer sold 62,167 vehicles manufactured in China in April, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). April sales figures, which include exports from China to overseas markets, were down 18 per cent from 75,842 a year ago and 30.2 per cent from 89,064 in March.

GAC Aion, the division of the GAC Group specialising in NEVs, also announced its sales figures for April. The company reported a global sales volume of 28,113 vehicles, a decline compared to the 32,530 units sold in the previous month.

Great Wall Motor (GWM) recorded New Energy Vehicle sales of 22,436 units, an increase of 51 per cent year-on-year, bringing cumulative NEV sales from January to April to 81,618 vehicles. Under the company’s umbrella, the e-car brands Ora recorded 4,686 sales and Wey 4,458 sales.

Zeekr, the premium electric vehicle subsidiary of Geely Holding, recorded a strong delivery performance last month as the updated Zeekr 001, which was launched at the end of February, was well received. In April, Zeekr reached a new high since its launch with 16,089 vehicles delivered. This is 98.61 per cent more than the 8,101 vehicles in April 2023 and 23.65 per cent more than the 13,012 vehicles in March 2024.

Leapmotor delivered 15,005 NEV vehicles in April, an increase of 72 per cent year-on-year and 3 per cent month-on-month. April saw the unveiling of Leapmotor’s flagship vehicle, the C16, and the start of pre-sales at Auto China 2024. Within 24 hours of the start of pre-sales, more than 11,950 pre-orders were recorded for the C16, indicating strong demand.

Nio delivered 15,620 all-electric vehicles in April, a significant increase of 134.6 per cent compared to the same month last year. Deliveries consisted of 8,817 SUVs and 6,803 saloons. Cumulative deliveries of NIO vehicles reached 495,267 units by 30 April 2024.

Xpeng delivered 9,393 electric cars, an increase of 33 per cent year-on-year and 4 per cent month-on-month. The Xpeng X9 achieved monthly deliveries of 1,959 units in April, with cumulative deliveries totalling nearly 10,000 units since its launch, maintaining its position as the best-selling all-electric MPV in China. Since the beginning of the year, Xpeng has delivered 31,214 electric cars, an increase of 23 per cent year-on-year.

The April sales figures of SAIC’s joint ventures with Volkswagen and General Motors suggest that they are better able to deal with new challengers than expected. SAIC-GM’s sales of Buick, Cadillac and Chevrolet NEVs totalled 8,762 vehicles, an increase of 93.1 per cent year-on-year. SAIC Volkswagen did not disclose exact figures, but announced that it had sold more than 10,000 ID. series vehicles in April, an increase of 56 per cent year-on-year.

Smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi can celebrate the successful launch of its first electric car, the SU7. The company was able to record the delivery of 7,058 units of the SU7 immediately after its premiere in April. At the end of April, there were also over 88,000 orders for the vehicle, meaning that Xiaomi could break the 100,000 deliveries mark in just a few months.

cnevpost.com (CAAM) cnevpost.com (BYD), cnevpost.com (Tesla), carnewschina.com (VW/GM), nio.com (Nio), xiaopeng.com (Xpeng), cnevpost.com (Zeekr), cnevpost.com (Xiaomi), carnewschina.com (Great Wall Motor), gasgoo.com Leapmotor), gasgoo.com (GAC AION)