China's car sales jump in October as automakers rush to meet annual goals

Car sales in China: China's passenger vehicle sales jumped 11.2 per cent in October year-on-year, the second straight monthly rise and the fastest growth since January, led by domestic champion BYD as automakers raced to meet annual sales targets.

Sales in the world's largest auto market totalled 2.28 million vehicles last month and increased 3 per cent to 17.99 million for the first 10 months of the year, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed on Friday.

October's growth was the highest since January's 57.1 per cent gain.

Helped by government subsidies of up to $2,800 apiece for trading in older cars for EVs and more fuel-efficient cars, which CPCA secretary-general Cui Dongshu expects to continue into 2025, greener cars continue to be a standout despite a faltering economy.

China's car sales will likely to see an annual rise of 5 per cent in 2024, Cui said.

Luxury car sales which shrank by 7 per cent year-on-year to 210,000 units last month, as well as weak sales of high-end extended-range hybrids, were proof of swings in upscale models despite robust growth in sales of entry-level EVs, he said.

Electric vehicle and plug-in hybrid sales grew by 56.7 per cent from the prior year and made up 52.5 per cent of overall sales, marking the fourth consecutive month that battery-powered cars including plug-ins outsold gasoline cars in the country.

BYD hit another monthly record with sales topping the 500,000 benchmark for the first time in October. It beat Tesla in revenue terms in the third quarter, albeit still trailing the US automaker as measured by EV sales.

The biggest Chinese rival to Tesla has achieved 81 per cent of its revised sales target for this year, while domestic automakers Geely and Stellantis-backed Leapmotor have so far hit over 80 per cent of their 2024 goals.

EV upstart Xiaomi, which delivered cars of over 20,000 units for the first time last month, is expected to achieve its full-year target of 100,000 cars in November.

With robust sales in its home turf where BYD sells 90 per cent of its cars, the local giant is widening its lead over second-placed Volkswagen and third-ranked Toyota.

BYD topped China’s auto sales rankings with a 15.8 per cent share of the overall market in the first nine months, while its sales of EVs and plug-in hybrids accounted for more than a third of the country’s total, CPCA data showed.

BYD was second only to the combined sales of VW's two joint ventures in China last year.

Globally, VW's MQB A1 automobile platform, estimated to be the top architecture this year, will fade over the coming years, while BYD's BLP is forecast to be the largest global platform in 2031, according to AutoForecast Solutions.

China's car exports slowed last month with a 13 per cent rise versus 22 per cent in October, ahead of the EU's EV tariffs of up to 45.3 per cent that took effect at end-October.