BYD Reports 200 Percent EV Profit Jump Amidst Tesla Price War

Chinese electric car giant BYD has reported a more than 200 percent increase in first-half profits, in spite of a price war with Tesla.

The company said profits rose 205 percent to 10.95 billion yuan ($1.5bn, £1.2bn) in the half ending in June, with revenue from its plug-in hybrid and battery-powered vehicles up 73 percent to 260.1bn yuan.

BYD is the world’s second-biggest manufacturer of battery-electric vehicles after Tesla, reporting 352,163 vehicles sold worldwide in the second quarter of 2023, up 95 percent year-on-year, compared to Tesla’s 466,140, an 83 percent year-on-year increase.

The figures for BYD’s first half follow a 400 percent jump in its annual net profit in 2022 and come as the company focuses increasingly on exports outside of China.

EV growth

That could mean a growing challenge to established automakers such as Volkswagen Group, which was the third-biggest seller of battery EVs in the second quarter, selling 180,239 units worldwide, 53 percent over the same quarter last year.

This year China is expected to surpass Japan as the world’s biggest car exporter.

Electric vehicles are projected to reach 50 percent of the sales in China’s car market, the world’s biggest, as soon as 2025, which would make it the first major economy to reach the milestone.

BYD is also a major producer of EV batteries, and its integrated supply chain has helped set it apart from the dozens of domestic competitors.

Crowded market

More than 94 brands currently offer more than 300 EV models at varied price points, according to Counterpoint Research.

In May 2023 BYD sold four of China’s 10 most popular EV models, including plug-in hybrids, while Tesla’s Model Y was the only one that made the top 10 list, according to Clean Technica.

The company controlled 30 percent of China’s EV market overall in 2022, including plug-in hybrids,  with Tesla following at 7 percent, according to figures from Statista.