GAC Group released a half-year performance report for 2026. The numbers are quite shocking — net loss for the first half estimated at 4.06 billion to 4.57 billion yuan. The net profit after deducting non-recurring gains and losses was even worse, with a loss of 4.8 billion to 5.6 billion yuan. More than 4 billion yuan, losing over 20 million yuan per day, it doesn't look very ideal.

But look at another set of numbers — GAC sold 773,100 vehicles in the first half, a year-on-year increase of 2.35%. New energy vehicle sales accounted for over 60%. Independent brands sold 346,000 vehicles, a surge of 35.69%. AION was even more fierce, 181,600 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 67.08%. Overseas exports 121,500 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 132%, the semi-annual export scale is already close to last year's full year level. Sales are up, new energy transformation is accelerating, and exports are doubling — but the books show an even bigger loss. How is this account calculated?

 GAC Group

What does the official say?

GAC's announcement was very straightforward, three reasons:

First, domestic market competition intensified, independent brands continued to increase sales investment, plus changes in product sales structure, and rising upstream raw material costs, leading to a decline in independent brand profits.

Second, joint venture brands are facing operational pressure. Specifically, terminal sales decline, continued increase in sales investment, rising raw materials, etc., are all important factors, and the company's investment income decreased year-on-year.

Reason for Loss 

Third, exchange rate fluctuations caused exchange losses, adding another blow. Obviously, GAC Group gave a relatively clear interpretation of the reasons for the loss in the first half.

To translate, it might be that independent brand profits are not as high as before, joint venture brands are under greater pressure, and exchange rates also caused a certain loss to profits.

Combining all the above factors, GAC Group is expected to incur a loss in the first half of 2026. Moreover, the loss amount is expected to reach 4.06 billion to 4.57 billion yuan, which is quite high.

However, Car Universe World believes that if you only focus on the word "loss", you might miss the real story.

Loss Forecast Announcement 

Joint Ventures: One "Under Pressure", One "Steady"

GAC Group official data shows, GAC Honda sold 68,300 vehicles in the first half, a year-on-year decline of 55.82%, almost 60% down. June single month 14,000 vehicles, although it increased more than 50% month-on-month, it fell 53% year-on-year.

The joint venture giant that used to sell 700,000 annually, now the average monthly sales of the first half is over 10,000 units. Accord, Fit, Vezel, Integra these classic models, monthly sales generally not as high as before.

Obviously, from the sales perspective, in the first half of 2026, GAC Honda still declined significantly, reaching over 50%, bearing a certain amount of pressure.

Production and Sales Express 

But the performance of GAC Toyota is different, the overall performance is still steady. Moreover, under the situation that domestic car market joint venture brands are under pressure overall, its sales volume is stable and rising.

GAC Group official data shows, in the first half of 2025 GAC Toyota sold 356,000 vehicles, monthly average sales close to 60,000 units. Year-on-year increase 3.29%. March, April, May for three consecutive months topped the sales list of joint venture car companies. July 2nd, GAC Toyota also welcomed the 10 millionth mass-produced vehicle rolling off the assembly line, joining the "million-unit level large factory".

Moreover, Car Universe World found, supporting GAC Toyota is not low-price volume-selling cars, but the Camry, Highlander, Sienna three major flagships continuing to exert effort, smart electric hybrid double engine vehicle proportion reached 54% . Boxi brand sold 52,000 units in the first half, Boxi 3X consecutive 10 months holding joint venture pure electric sales champion.

One continues to bear pressure, one steady, this joint venture card, GAC has not finished playing yet.

 Boxi 7

Independent and Overseas Markets, The Real Highlights

Car Universe World believes, if there is anything eye-catching in GAC's first-half performance report, it must be the overseas market and the surge in independent sales.

Official data shows, first half of 2026, GAC Trumpchi cumulative sales 164,000 units. Compared to the same period last year, sales increased by 12.36%.

AION rose even harder. Official data shows, first half of 2026, GAC AION cumulative sales 181,000 units. Compared to the same period last year, sales increased by 67.08%.

In terms of overseas markets, first half independent brand exports 121,500 vehicles, year-on-year growth 132%, semi-annual export scale already close to last year's full year. Americas, Asia-Pacific, Middle East, Africa, Europe five major regions simultaneously achieved high-speed growth.

 Trumpchi E8

Mexican market, AION ES and AION UT both entered the top ten in new energy BEV sales. Bolivia, GAC brand consecutive months holding China brand passenger car sales champion. Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia — GAC's overseas map is blossoming in multiple points.

GAC's overseas target set at the beginning of the year was 250,000 vehicles for the full year, striving for 300,000 vehicles. First half completed 121,500 vehicles, completion rate close to half. When the domestic market is too hard to compete, overseas became GAC's strongest growth curve.

 AION N60

The Account of Transformation, Cannot Look Only at the Present

The "Panyu Action" launched in 2025 is being implemented step by step.

Headquarters moved to Panyu, closer to the production frontline. Feng Xingya said an interesting sentence — "We moved the office to the place closest to the gunfire, so that those who hear the gunfire can call for it." Business Unit (BU) restructuring finished, Hyper AION BU formed first, January 2026 Trumpchi BU also established. GAC independent brands have formed a new operating architecture centered on BU.

Cooperation with Huawei also produced results. Jointly created high-end brand "Qijing" first model GT7, launched in Hangzhou on June 26th. Price 209,900 to 329,900 yuan, launched 24 hours big deposit orders broke 5200 units, Post-90s, Post-00s user proportion over 60%. Pre-sale 5 hours orders broke 10,000. 90 cities nationwide 300 stores gradually launched.

Qijing GT7 is equipped with Huawei Qiankun Intelligent Driving ADS 5. This is GAC's first car with deep cooperation with Huawei, and also a hard battle facing the market after the "Panyu Action".

These moves are all "money" in the short term — R&D needs money, channels need money, brand building needs money. But looking at a longer time dimension, these investments are storing power for the next stage. GAC positioned 2026 as the "Internal Renovation" critical stage, likely this is the meaning — first solidify the foundation, then talk about building high-rise buildings.

 AION N60 

Conclusion of This Article:

GAC's full-year target set at the beginning of the year was 2 million vehicles, first half completion rate less than 40%. Second half needs to sell nearly 1.23 million vehicles, monthly average over 200,000 vehicles. Under the current situation of joint venture pressure and intensifying new energy competition, how hard this task is, no need to say more.

But Car Universe World believes, the cards GAC holds are not finished playing yet. Joint ventures have GAC Toyota stabilizing, independent brands have AION and Trumpchi rushing, overseas releasing volume, Qijing just started.

How to play these cards, when to play them, perhaps will become an important factor for GAC Group when to walk out of the pain of transformation. These, we still let time give an answer.

Transformation is always bitter first then sweet, and never looking only at the present. What do you think? Let's chat in the comments.

Statement: This article involves relevant events, originating from brand official or authoritative media messages, for reference only, specific based on official information. If there are information, data discrepancies caused by typos, based on official information. Hope everyone looks rationally, do not believe rumors, do not spread rumors.

Article Statement:

This article is original writing of Car Universe World, reviewed by Ling Qing/Liu Shuai, Total Issue 14186, some pictures from the internet, marked source data and related materials are all citations. Car Universe World original copyright owned, infringement will be investigated.

In the first half of 2026, China's car exports reached 4.059 million units, up 63% year-on-year. At this growth rate, breaking 10 million units for the year is almost a certainty — by then China will become the world's first automotive giant to export over 10 million units annually, equivalent to 2.5 times Japan's volume.

But another set of data is not looking so good. From January to May this year, domestic passenger car retail sales reached 7.099 million units cumulatively, down 19.5% year-on-year. Among the five major independent brands, BYD sold 1.8085 million units in the first half, down 15.72% year-on-year. Growth relies mostly on exports. This isn't prosperity; it's like 'starving at home, relying entirely on grabbing from outside'.

Let's first see just how fierce the exports are. Chery exported 940,000 units in half a year, securing the top spot, with a share as high as 74.3% — 3 out of every 4 cars sold were exports. BYD followed with 790,000 units, with 174,800 units exported in June alone. What was most unexpected wasn't the volume, but the direction. In May data from 31 European countries, these five — BYD, SAIC, Geely, Chery, Leapmotor — sold a combined 138,400 units, up 65% year-on-year, surpassing the total of six Japanese brands like Toyota, Nissan, and Honda for the first time. The market share of Chinese brands in Europe jumped directly from 5.6% in May last year to 10.7%. Doubling in one year isn't growth, it's swallowing whole.

But Europeans lost patience. On July 1, the EU's final anti-subsidy duties on Chinese pure electric vehicles officially took effect — 17.4% for BYD, 18.8% for Geely, 35.3% for SAIC, plus a 10% base tariff, pushing the combined tax rate for some manufacturers above 45%. Tougher still, the EU is brewing to include plug-in hybrids in the tax scope. Over the past year, plug-in hybrids were the core channel for Chinese manufacturers to bypass pure EV tariffs; now they're trying to block all paths. But China is not someone to be trifled with. The Ministry of Commerce immediately issued a final anti-dumping ruling on EU pork, with rates ranging from 4.9% to 19.8% for five years. China is the world's largest pork consumer market; the EU's pig feet, ears, and offal rely entirely on China to digest. This blow targets the vote banks of agricultural states. Countermeasures on cognac and dairy products are also coming. Wine merchants in France's Cognac region are already shaking.

But can tariffs really stop us? The Chinese auto manufacturers' response is simple — build factories right at your doorstep. BYD is building a factory in Hungary to start production next year, Chery is laying out plans in Brazil and Spain, and SAIC is deepening roots in Thailand. If tariffs block prices, I'll just bypass your tariff wall. It's exactly the same script as Japanese automakers frantically built factories in the US after the US imposed tariffs back then. The only difference is that Chinese cars going overseas are faster, larger in volume, and the industrial chain is more complete.

Overall, the slump in the domestic car market forces all brands to go outward, and exports have made up for all the growth lost domestically. But the EU's 45% tariff is just the first hurdle; behind it, the door to the North American market is tightly shut, and the fortress of Japanese cars in Southeast Asia won't be breached in a day. The race for Chinese car exports has shifted from 'grabbing incremental growth' to 'fighting hard battles'. 10 million units is inevitable, but the tariff walls, political barriers, and localization difficulties on the road are getting harder and harder.

On June 1, Geely Automobile Holdings Co., Ltd. (shturl.) released May sales data, with sales reaching 237,637 units that month, achieving double-digit growth month-over-month and year-over-month for three consecutive months. New energy, overseas exports, and each brand segment delivered outstanding performance, demonstrating strong growth momentum.

Sales Rise Across the Board; New Energy Share Continues to Lead

In May, Geely Automobile's overall sales grew steadily, with its three core brands working in synergy:

• Geely brand sales reached 182,528 units, solidifying the group's sales foundation;
• Lynk & Co brand sales reached 20,732 units, cumulative sales exceeded 1.8 million;
• ZEEKR delivered 34,377 units, a year-on-year increase of 81.8%, achieving double-digit growth month-over-month and year-over-month for four consecutive months. The average transaction price per unit surged 52.4% year-on-year, with the 9-series and 8-series models accounting for nearly 50%.

Group new energy sales (including Geely, Lynk & Co, ZEEKR) reached 133,355 units, accounting for 56.1%, exceeding 50% for four consecutive months, showing significant results in new energy transformation.

Overseas markets achieved another breakthrough. May export sales reached 85,144 units, a new historical high. Among them, new energy product exports were 40,803 units, accounting for 47.9%, with global layout continuously deepening.

Multiple Brands Work in Unison; Product Matrix Continues to Upgrade

ZEEKR: Luxury Pure Electric Sales and Value Rise Together; Flagship New Product Leads with Power

The refreshed ZEEKR 009 officially launched on May 19, with a limited-time price starting at 413,800 yuan after benefits. The seven-seat Ultra+"Family Edition" order share exceeded 60%. The new car features a full-stack 900V high-voltage architecture, CLTC range of 720 km, adding 510 km of range in 10 minutes of charging, 0-100 km/h acceleration in just 3.9 seconds, paired with a 700 TOPS computing power Thor-U chip, achieving the pinnacle of intelligence and performance.

ZEEKR 7X global cumulative deliveries exceeded 160,000 units, expanding to over 40 regions in one year of going global; ZEEKR 9X cumulative deliveries surpassed 60,000 units, with shooting brake model confirmed orders continuously breaking 10,000.

Lynk & Co: Electrification Transformation Accelerates; Sports Performance Redefined

Lynk & Co May new energy model sales were 14,688 units, accounting for 70.8%. Lynk & Co 10 and Lynk & Co 10+ officially launched at the end of May and started the first batch of deliveries, redefining the standard for mid-to-large size sports pure electric sedans with ultimate driving control.

Coinciding with the brand's 10th anniversary, nearly 100 Lynk & Co stores nationwide completed image refreshes, and channel new energy transformation is landing on a large scale; meanwhile, signing Han Dongjun as the Automotive Sports Ambassador, with frequent race results, winning multiple championships in TCR China and CTCC events.

Geely Brand: Hit Models Frequently; Covering All Sub-segments

• Geely Galaxy: May sales 81,727 units, Xingyao 7 MAX sales exceeded 10,000 units within 23 hours of launch, all-new Xingyuan range fully upgraded, limited-time rights price starting at 61,800 yuan, 700,000 units delivered in 573 days;
• Geely China Star: May sales 100,801 units, double growth month-over-month and year-over-month, Boyue and Double Bin family year-on-year increase both exceeded 45%, Xingrui TCR race car won world-class event championships;
• New products such as Emgrand and Cowboy were launched successively, consolidating the leading position in the family car market; Emgrand family global cumulative sales exceeded 4.2 million units.

Dual Breakthrough in Globalization and Intelligence; Strengthening the Foundation for Development

Overseas markets bloomed in multiple points, with multiple ZEEKR and Geely Galaxy models topping sales lists in sub-segments in countries such as Australia, Mexico, and Malaysia; in May, Geely Automobile reached a strategic cooperation with the England team, continuously expanding the globalization "friend circle."

In the field of intelligence, Qianli Haohan assisted driving cumulative mileage reached 1.38 billion kilometers, activation rate 93.8%, year-on-year growth 215%, cumulative avoidance 8.9 million times, safety strength industry-leading. Geely Galaxy Starship 7 EM-i completed extreme collision tests, demonstrating Chinese automobile manufacturing strength with hardcore safety.

Based on the "One Geely" strategy, Geely Automobile will continue to deepen new energy and intelligence transformation, accelerate global layout, drive the Chinese automobile industry to continue upward with all-round upgrades in products, technology, and brands.

When it comes to domestic car brands, many people's impression may still be stuck at the stage of mainstream family cars. However, this is already old news from a few years ago. You should know that current domestic car brands not only beat joint venture brands in the domestic market, but have also surpassed foreign car brands on multiple tracks such as high-end development and overseas exports. Take the Geely Automobile we are talking about today for example.

Growth Momentum Leads the Industry

According to the latest data released by the official, Geely Automobile's cumulative sales in May reached 237,637 vehicles. It achieved double growth year-on-year and month-on-month for three consecutive months, leading the overall market with stable growth and impressive results. However, compared to this already excellent total performance, many industry insiders, after seeing the sales results of each brand under Geely Automobile, will be amazed that its quality is also getting higher.

As is well known, there are two hardest markets in the automotive industry: the luxury high-end market and the overseas export market.

Taking Geely Automobile as an example, its "Global Luxury Technology Brand" — Zeekr Automobile, reached deliveries of 34,377 vehicles in May, an 81.8% increase year-on-year and an 8.1% increase month-on-month, achieving double growth for four consecutive months. The average transaction price per vehicle also increased by 52.4% year-on-year. What is even more shocking is that the sales share of Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series, which are priced as high as 400,000 to 500,000, accounts for nearly 50%!

Not only that, Geely Automobile's "Global New Energy High-End Brand" — Lynk & Co, also achieved May sales of 20,732 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales accounting for 70.8%, and the brand's cumulative sales have broken 1.8 million. This shows that Geely Automobile's high-end models have not only won the recognition of a large number of consumers with excellent product power, but have also completed the transformation of volume and price rising together at the brand level.

Of course, as the undisputed leading automotive enterprise in China, Geely Automobile's focus is no longer limited to the domestic market. It chose to go global to challenge the more difficult overseas market. This is not the case, May's overseas export achievement of 85,144 vehicles set a new record for export sales. It is worth mentioning that the hot-selling products of Geely Automobile brands overseas are also mostly high-end or new energy vehicles.

For example, Zeekr has entered more than 50 countries and regions, and the cumulative global delivery volume of Zeekr 7X has exceeded 160,000 vehicles; Geely Galaxy Starship 7 EM-i remained the champion of new energy plug-in hybrid SUV sales in Kazakhstan for March and April; Geely Galaxy E5 remained the champion of pure electric SUV-C market sales in Australia, Argentina, UAE, Morocco, and Uruguay for the first quarter, and stayed in the top three in Brazil, Uzbekistan, and Indonesia new energy pure electric SUV-C models!

Hardcore Strength Creates Brilliance

Obviously, whether it is the rapid sales growth trend, or the hot sales in new energy, high-end market and overseas market, it is inseparable from hard strength as support. Taking Lynk & Co Automobile as the first car racing brand in China for example, top technology shouldn't just stay on the marketing level, but must be proven on the track. Therefore, it recently announced carrying 03+ TCR Racer, 03++ Racer, and 03 CUP EVO three racing cars to participate in TCR China, CTCC China Cup, and Lynk & Co Cup three major events simultaneously.

With hardcore strength, Lynk & Co naturally fears no high-difficulty tests. In the two-round finals of TCR China, the 03+ TCR Racer achieved the results of 4 championships, 1 runner-up, and 2 third-place finishes with its hardcore performance strength; in the CTCC China Cup, the Lynk & Co Zongheng Racing Team even achieved the results of 2 championships, 2 runner-ups, and 1 third-place finish. At the same time, in the 2026 Season FIA TCR World Tour opener, the Starri TCR Racer of Geely China Star Racing Team (Geely Cyan Racing) also won the race in the final and brought back the historical first win. This not only means that Starri TCR has world-class competitiveness, but also marks that Geely China Star Racing Team has officially completed the first chapter of the Geely Automobile Sports New Era.

At the same time, in technical levels such as intelligence and safety, the Haohan inherited Geely and Volvo safety heritage, assisted driving mileage grew by 215% in one year, leading the entire industry with the fastest growth rate. In the recent Euro NCAP official test, Geely Galaxy Starship 7 EM-i (Geely STARRAY EM-i) successfully completed the exceeding standard bilateral serial limit crash test at the France UTAC Laboratory. This not only intuitively confirms Geely's leading vehicle safety technology and mature systematic safety strength, but also lays a solid foundation for Chinese automotive safety technology to go international and participate in global industry standards!

Daxia Car Talk: I believe many people, after seeing Geely Automobile's sales data, will have the praise "It's too comprehensive" in mind. After all, car enterprises that can achieve impressive results in new energy, high-end, overseas exports, and even on the track at the same time, let alone in the independent domestic brand circle, you can't even find a few car enterprises in the global automotive industry that can achieve these things simultaneously!