BEIJING, (Reuters) – BYD posted a seventh straight monthly sales decline in March, according to Reuters calculations, as the Chinese electric vehicle maker struggles with growing competition in the world’s largest auto market.
BYD’s sales fell 20.5% last month from a year earlier to 300,222 vehicles, easing from a 41.1% decline in February, the calculations showed, based on a Weibo post by BYD executive Li Yunfei and the company’s previous filings.
First-quarter vehicle sales were down 30% from a year earlier, the calculations showed.
BYD’s sales in its home market have been squeezed by growing competition from rivals including Geely and Leapmotor prompting the EV market leader last month to roll out its first major battery upgrade in six years.
The new lineup, priced above 150,000 yuan ($21,721) – a key threshold in China’s hyper-competitive EV market – has raised doubts about its ability to boost sales as buyers continue to favour cheaper models.
BYD’s vehicle margins fell last year as its annual profit declined for the first time in four years, missing estimates.
Overseas sales remain a bright spot, totalling 320,673 vehicles in the first quarter, or 45.8% of the total.
BYD is “highly confident” of hitting its 2026 overseas sales target of 1.5 million vehicles, Reuters reported on Monday.
($1 = 6.9058 Chinese yuan renminbi)
Reporting by Qiaoyi Li and Ju-min Park. Editing by Mark Potter
