When the narrative of sheer scale in the Chinese New Energy Passenger Car Market is no longer persuasive, a more severe question arises: Where lies the value foundation of the industry?

Looking at the sales data for April alone, it seems everything is "growing upwards": The retail penetration rate of Chinese new energy vehicles historically broke through 60%, reaching 61.4%, meaning for every 10 new cars sold, more than 6 are new energy vehicles.

However, a set of less-than-ideal data echoed in the industry at the same time: In 2025, domestic car sales exceeded 34.4 million units, but the overall profit margin of China's automotive industry during the same period was only 4.1%.

"It looks like scale is growing, but the industry's overall health faces challenges." Wang Hui, Vice President of Avatr Technology, cited data from the CPCA, and in January-February 2026, this figure dropped further to 2.9%.

The latest data shared by Cui Dongshu, Secretary-General of the CPCA Passenger Car Section, shows that in January-March 2026, the automotive industry's profit margin fell to 3.2%, at a low level for the same period in recent years. The automotive industry's profit margin is not only significantly lower than the average profit margin of national industrial enterprises above designated size, but it is also approaching the break-even point for operations for the vast majority of vehicle manufacturers.

When a penetration rate of 61.4% collides with a profit margin of 2.9%, it forms a very fractured industrial landscape: China's automotive industry is speeding ahead on the road of "getting bigger", but is stumbling on the road of "getting stronger".

At the Shenzhen 2026 (4th) Future Automotive Pioneer Conference, these "pioneers" gave some answers and posed deeper questions.

Image Source: Future Automotive Pioneer Conference

Sales Are Rising, Profits Are Falling?

Since 2026, China's automotive market has presented a seemingly contradictory yet established picture.

On one hand, the surge of new energy vehicles is unstoppable. Data from the CPCA Passenger Car Section shows that in April 2026, domestic new energy passenger car retail reached 849,000 units, the penetration rate historically broke through 60%, reaching 61.4%, an increase of 9.7 percentage points compared to the same period in 2025, setting a historical record for monthly penetration in the domestic car market.

Among these, the performance of independent brands was particularly eye-catching. In April, the new energy penetration rate within independent brands reached 80.1%, while the new energy penetration rate among luxury vehicles was only 26.1%. Chinese brands already hold a dominant position in the new energy market.

On the other hand, profit margins for vehicle manufacturers are being compressed sharply. From 4.1% in 2025 to 2.9% in the first two months of 2026, this downward curve is concerning.

Just looking at the absolute value of profit, the total profit of the automotive industry in January-March 2026 was 78.4 billion yuan, a 18% year-over-year decrease. Facing this figure, Wang Hui's remarks at the conference appeared particularly sharp: "Sales without profit are fake sales; scale achieved through price wars is even more of a false prosperity."

Image Source: Future Automotive Pioneer Conference

"Selling more while losing more" has turned from a joke into a ruthless reality.

Investigating the reasons, large-scale "price wars" are undoubtedly the most direct catalyst.

Since 2025, the industry has seen the slogan "Electricity is cheaper than fuel", followed by various companies catching up. Lowering prices is no longer news. But the more fundamental problem is that when all car manufacturers have high convergence in technical routes and product configurations: 800V high-voltage platforms, AI voice large models, and end-to-end intelligent driving become standard configurations, price becomes the only differentiated competitive means, and profits are eroded layer by layer.

Xu Jun, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Leapmotor, analyzed: "A range of 700 kilometers versus 1000 kilometers, user perception difference approaches zero, yet costs rise exponentially. Compute power from 30 TOPS to 1000 TOPS, experience difference is far smaller than parameters."

Image Source: Future Automotive Pioneer Conference

He therefore believes that specs so far are just a basic entry ticket, not the deciding factor.

Behind Xu Jun's viewpoint is a trend worth reflection: When automotive technology enters a "convergence period", the architecture of centralized computing + regional controllers is converging, end-to-end intelligent driving solutions are becoming identical, and AI solutions for smart cockpits are becoming increasingly similar, making it increasingly difficult to build differentiated competitiveness relying on technical parameters.

The weight of brand attention in user purchase decisions is rising significantly.

Nio Founder Li Bin revealed the latest research data from McKinsey: One or two years ago, brand was only ranked fifth among purchase decision factors, now it has jumped to second, "believes it will soon enter the top spot".

Image Source: Future Automotive Pioneer Conference

When brands begin to become the "deciding factor", China's automotive industry's technological dividend is quickly turning into brand dividends, while brand reconstruction and construction are far more difficult and test fortitude more than stacking parameters.

Who is Trying to Break the Negative Growth Curse?

Against the background of declining industry profit margins, not all enterprises have fallen into the mud of "revenue growth without profit growth".

At this conference, a few "dark horses" used solid data to prove a possibility: Chinese brands can not only sell at higher prices, but also make profits back.

Xing Xinchu, Chairman of Jianghuai Automobile Group, disclosed in his speech that since Maextro S800 launched in May 2025, cumulative deliveries have exceeded 18,500 units, ranking first in luxury sedan sales above 700,000 yuan for 8 consecutive months.

Image Source: Future Automotive Pioneer Conference

From the perspective of price segments, million-level Chinese luxury cars surpassing century-old luxury brands was almost unimaginable five years ago.

Xing Xinchu attributed this to the path choice of "redefining luxury with technology": "The Maextro brand is not simply copying the development path of traditional luxury cars, but rewriting the narrative paradigm of ultra-luxury car brands with technological innovation."

Nio represents another path worth examining.

On June 1st, Nio announced the latest delivery data: Deliveries in May totaled 37,705 units, a significant year-over-year increase of 62.3%, and a month-over-month increase of 28.4%, setting a new record for single-month deliveries in the brand's history.

The main brand "Nio" delivered 20,013 units, a 50.8% year-over-year increase; the brand "Onvo" positioning the family market performed particularly well, delivering 12,029 units, a 91.5% year-over-year surge, and a month-over-month increase of up to 124.8%; the new brand "Firefly" delivered 5,663 units, a 53.9% year-over-year increase.

From January to May this year, Nio's cumulative new car deliveries have reached 150,526 units, a 68.7% year-over-year increase. At this point, Nio's historical cumulative deliveries officially broke through the 1.14 million mark, reaching 1,148,118 units.

Regarding financial reports, in Q1 this year, Nio's total revenue was 25.53 billion yuan, a 112.2% year-over-year increase, exceeding the revenue guidance upper limit of 24.48 billion to 25.18 billion yuan previously given by the company; total gross profit was 4.86 billion yuan, a 428.4% year-over-year significant increase; the company's comprehensive gross margin reached 19.0%, the highest in four years. Vehicle gross margin was 18.8%, growing quarter-over-quarter for four consecutive quarters, also the highest in four years. Other sales gross margin was 20.6%, also the best level in four years.

Regarding net loss, Q1 net loss narrowed to 332.1 million yuan, significantly narrowing from the net loss of 6.75 billion yuan at the same period last year. As of the end of Q1, Nio's cash reserves increased to 48.2 billion yuan, achieving positive operating cash flow for three consecutive quarters.

In Q1 2026, Nio brand's average transaction price reached 390,000 yuan, 50,000 yuan higher than BMW and 130,000 yuan higher than Audi.

Behind this price difference is a qualitative change in brand premium capability.

No less coincidentally, data shows that the average transaction price of the HIMA全系 series vehicles has remained stable at 390,000 yuan, ranking first in the average transaction price of Chinese car brands for several consecutive months, with performance in some periods surpassing traditional luxury brands.

In segmented brands, the AITO brand's average transaction price reached as high as 409,000 yuan, flagship model AITO M9 cumulative deliveries exceeded 280,000 units, ranking first in 500,000-level luxury SUV sales for 21 consecutive months. The Maextro brand positioning the ultra-luxury market also performed strongly, the first model Maextro S800 price range 708,000 - 1,018,000 yuan, deliveries exceeded 17,000 units in 11 months since launch, ranking first in ultra-luxury sedans above 700,000 yuan for 8 consecutive months, single-month sales even exceeding the total sales of multiple traditional top luxury sedans.

Image Source: Future Automotive Pioneer Conference

The logic behind these brands rising against the trend in price wars is not accidental: First, deep understanding of user value rather than simple spec stacking, second, extreme investment in new technologies forming tech premiums, third, forming systemic capabilities in manufacturing, supply chain, and quality, fourth, deep synergy with partners like Huawei forming technological leadership.

However, analyzing the financial performance of the above brands more deeply, a thought-provoking question emerges: Will the existence of these high-price, high-profit brands change the trend of the automotive industry's profit margin overall?

The answer may not be optimistic. Although Maextro S800, Nio ES8/ES9, and AITO M9 have achieved impressive results in their respective price segments, their share of overall industry sales remains limited.

In other words, the "local breakthrough" of high-endization has not yet reversed the "overall predicament" of the entire industry.

For most independent brands, the average car price is still below 150,000 yuan, and the main battlefield of price wars continues intensely in the mid-to-low-end market.

When most players are still struggling at the loss line, a few successful high-end brands cannot support the entire industry's profitability level.

The true test of China's automotive industry moving "from big to strong" is not whether it can produce one or two products that can rival the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, but whether it can achieve high-quality value creation universally across all categories and price segments.

Mercedes-Benz Sales in China Dropped 27%, Can Chinese Cars Smile Overseas?

When the smoke of price wars rises and falls in the domestic market, the overseas market is becoming China's new "second battlefield" for the next round of competition.

At this conference, multiple guests elaborated in-depth on the strategic layout and direction of China's automotive globalization. If domestic competition is about fierce struggle in the existing stock market, then global competition is a long-term bet on the incremental market.

Avatr's globalization practice provides a highly representative sample.

Wang Hui disclosed in the speech that Avatr has entered more than 40 countries and regions. Avatr 11's starting price in China is about 290,000 yuan, but overseas it is close to 450,000 yuan.

"In Thailand, we firmly hold the #1 spot in luxury electric SUV sales, and in Dubai we occupy 10% of the local high-end electric vehicle market share." Wang Hui said, "At the end of this year, we will officially enter Europe. Although we have been in overseas markets for about a year and a half, we have already achieved stable profitability. So future globalization is something that must be done."

Wang Hui also revealed the brand strategy of sponsoring the Portugal national team in the interview session. He stated that Avatr's main products in Europe will fully enter Europe in November and December. He will go to Europe to communicate with partners in multiple countries. "Sponsoring the Portugal national team is just one of our actions at the Europe brand level. What we adhere to in Europe including globally is long-termism. Besides the brand side and product side, greater resource investment is in the service side, system side, and construction of operational capabilities."

Geely's globalization layout is more macroscopic and systematic.

Geely Automobile Group Vice President Li Chuanghai pointed out that the "most essential thing about China's automotive globalization is not low-price volume, but technology as the root, system as the foundation, brand as the soul, ultimately completing globalization from selling cars to defining the future of cars".

Image Source: Future Automotive Pioneer Conference

He introduced that Geely has operated globalization business for 20 years, owning 5 R&D centers, 16 test bases, with deep integration of local partners in Europe, Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Geely has participated in co-building international standards and is the first Asian car manufacturer in IATF with board voting rights.

In the dimension of car exports, data from April 2026 also provides an important reference.

In April 2026, car exports reached 901,000 units, a 74.4% year-over-year increase, among which new energy vehicle exports increased by more than double year-over-year, reaching 430,000 units. The overseas market has become the most important incremental engine for China's automotive industry.

However, while export growth is gratifying, a comparative data worth examining is: In Q1 2026, Mercedes-Benz Group sales in China were 111,600 units, a 26.9% year-over-year decrease, becoming the region with the most significant decline among its major global markets. Meanwhile, financial reports showed Mercedes-Benz Q1 revenue was 31.602 billion euros, a 4.9% year-over-year decrease; net profit was 1.433 billion euros, a 17.2% decrease; global sales were 499,700 units, a 6% year-over-year decrease.

This set of numbers reflects both the challenges Mercedes-Benz encountered in the China market, and poses a question: When Chinese brands take root in the overseas market, in what posture will they face global competition?

Chinese cars are replicating the dilemma BBA faced in China's domestic market: When local brands continuously conquer territory through technological advantages and high cost-performance ratios, powerful international brands may also encounter strong counterattacks from local brands in other markets.

When Mercedes-Benz China Senior R&D Executive VP Drummond Jacoy was asked how he views China's new luxury brands, his answer was cautious yet with a hint of urgency: "China has many very excellent brands and products, I respect them very much. We are vigorously embracing technological innovation, continuously learning, and blending cutting-edge technology with brand accumulation."

Image Source: Future Automotive Pioneer Conference

He particularly emphasized that Mercedes-Benz has already carried out deep cooperation with Chinese tech companies in China, from ByteDance and Tencent to Momenta, from Amap to Spark, Mercedes-Benz is trying to narrow the intelligent technology gap with China's local enterprises in unprecedented ways.

This just reveals the new trend of global competition: The battlefield has expanded from China's domestic market to the global market, and the core focus of competition has evolved from single-product competition to all-round competition covering technology, ecosystem, supply chain, and brand.

In Li Chuanghai's words: "Going out is not difficult, standing firm, integrating, and taking root is the real skill."

True globalization is by no means simply copying domestic products and price models overseas, but achieving deep and comprehensive integration from capital to technology, from standards to supply chain.

Leapmotor's strategic layout also echoes this judgment. Leapmotor Founder Zhu Jiangming once publicly disclosed Leapmotor's globalization goals. Zhu Jiangming believes the first step is to achieve a "40-60 split", China accounting for 60%, overseas accounting for 40%; next, strive for a "50-50 split"; the most ideal state is "reverse 40-60". If China's automotive global share can achieve 40% domestic and 60% overseas, that is the best state of true globalization.

From "selling products" to "building systems", this is the threshold China's automotive globalization must cross. In the next three to five years, whoever can first form a viable and sustainable profit model in the overseas market will seize the initiative in the long-term race of globalization.

Conclusion: Car Manufacturers Must Make Money

Back to this conference's theme — "Climbing Steps".

China's automotive industry has completed a leap from catching up to leading in 20 years. There are no short cuts on this road, every step is trodden out. But today, China's automotive industry faces an awkward dilemma: Its achievements in volume have reached the peak, global largest car producer, global largest new energy market, globally leading intelligent technology cluster, but breakthroughs in quality are only just beginning to show signs in local areas.

Industry profit margins dropping through 3.2% means the red light for industry health has already lit up.

When most enterprises have exhausted profits in price wars, who will still have enough funds to invest in R&D for next-gen technology, brand reconstruction, and globalization expansion?

From Wang Hui's "Sales without profit are fake sales", to Xu Jun's "Everyone can lower prices, cutting costs is the real skill", to Li Chuanghai's "Keeping direction in the no-man's land", the most valuable consensus of this conference might just be this common sense as simple as it is: The competition of the automotive industry is a war of attrition, not a blitzkrieg.

As Xing Xinchu said: "On the road of breakthrough in high-endization of Chinese brands, there are no lone heroes, only symbiotic evolution."

When the penetration rate of 61.4% and the profit margin of 3.2% are written on this page of the industrial picture at the same time, the answer is already clear enough: China's automotive industry must move from pursuing "getting bigger" to a new stage of "getting stronger".

The issue is not whether it can sell cars to the million-level, but when the price war burns out the last bit of profit, whether the entire industry can still stand steadily on every step of "Climbing Steps".

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

With the May auto market sales figures released, some celebrate while others worry. Yet Changan Automobile's performance report showing 209,100 units still made quite a few people sit up and take notice. It wasn't the total volume—for Changan's scale has always been there—but the 'value' within that performance report, carrying a distinct flavor compared to usual.

We need to temporarily shift our gaze away from the over-discussed 'involution' domestic market. What caught my attention most about Changan this time is not the 5.8% growth in NEVs, nor the individual performance of Qiyuan or Deepal, but that set of data: overseas deliveries of 70,700 units, a year-over-year increase of 38%. Nearly one-third of sales come from overseas; in the context of all Chinese automotive brands, this proportion is quite staggering.

You should know, just last month, Changan officially announced becoming the global official partner of the Portugal national football team. At that time, many thought this was just another sports marketing campaign. But looking at the overseas sales in May combined, you will understand this is the key move of Changan's 'Inclusive as the Sea' Plan 2.0; the globalization strategy behind it is very clear - it's not just selling cars overseas, but becoming a true global brand.

In recent years, I've visited overseas factories of many domestic autonomous brands and witnessed various 'going global' models. Some just pull domestic stock cars out to make profit via exchange rates, while others sincerely build channels and provide services. Changan belongs to the latter, and is the type that 'fortifies its camp and fights steady battles'. Starting from Southeast Asia, it gradually planted its supply chain, service system, and brand awareness. This cooperation with the Portuguese national team is more like the horn signaling an entry into the mainstream European market. This composure and strategic determination, frankly, cannot be seen on many brands that are eager for quick success.

Making the overseas market work has an easily overlooked benefit: it can strengthen domestic product capability. The logic is simple: to meet the needs of different regions, road conditions, and regulatory standards globally, your product R&D standards must be 'set high, not low'.

Specifically regarding products, this feeling becomes more obvious. For example, Changan's Blue Whale Powertrain, previously everyone thought 'domestic engine' was just a gimmick. But look at the CS75 PLUS and Eado Blue Whale Super Engine models just launched in May, directly announcing a 'launch price from 79,900 CNY', while claiming 'fuel consumption halved'. This isn't a simple price war; it's a technology popularization war. Taking a set of mature, efficient powertrains and hitting the market at this price tests the integration capability of the entire supply chain and R&D system. For ordinary consumers, spending less money to get a more fuel-efficient and reliable car is a tangible gain. This is much more sincere than piling up smart configurations you won't use.

Speaking of intelligence, Changan's recent move is also worth pondering. Their self-developed 'Tianshu' piloting end-to-end technology is ready for mass production. Many media might boast about how many TOPS of computing power or how many sensors. But what I'd rather emphasize is the three words 'end-to-end'. This used to be the capital for top players like Tesla and Huawei to show off. Changan quietly made it the core of its own 'Beidou Tianshu 2.0' plan.

I've visited Changan's software center and seen their road test data. My feeling is that traditional big factories, once determined to transform, their accumulated strengths in hardware, chassis, and safety fields actually become advantages in the second half of intelligence development. A smart car must first be a car that is good to drive. Changan's intelligent driving solution feels relatively 'steady'. Unlike some new forces that are radical in showing off skills, it releases functions bit by bit while guaranteeing safety redundancy. This intelligence dominated by 'engineer thinking' might lack some buzz, but for users who actually drive daily, it feels much more reliable.

Of course, we can't just brag about technology; we must look at the performance of each sub-brand. Deepal Automobile's May sales reached 33,243 units, a 30% year-over-year increase, with overseas cumulative sales from January to May surging by an explosive 167%. This data is quite interesting. Deepal actually undertakes the role of the pioneer for Changan's 'youthification' and 'electrification'. Its design language and marketing methods are closer to today's young consumers. The explosive growth in overseas sales shows that this design aesthetic and technical route possesses global competitiveness. Avatr delivered 7,336 units in May. Although the absolute number isn't exaggerated, its significance lies in brand elevation, the deep binding with top tech companies like Huawei, providing the best 'credit endorsement' for Changan's technical reserves.

Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,528 units in May. The hero model Q05 alone sold 15,812 units, and even launched in Thailand where orders exceeded 3,000 in just three days. What does this show? It shows Changan's multi-brand strategy is no longer simply making cars out and selling them separately, but truly finding respective niche markets and target audiences. Qiyuan targets the 'basic' of family use, comfort, and cost-performance; Deepal attacks personality and sports; Avatr guards the high-end and technology. This set of combination punches is much more refined than the extensive 'having more sons to fight' tactics used by many brands.

Finally, we must return to 'people' and 'management'. Changan Automobile's transformation in recent years appears 'smooth' largely thanks to the management's strategic determination. From the 'Shangri-La' NEV plan, to the 'Beidou Tianshu' Intelligence plan, to the 'Inclusive as the Sea' Globalization plan, any one of these three would be enough to keep an auto company busy for ten years. Changan is doing all simultaneously and is genuinely advancing them.

Five years ago, if you told me Changan would become a global technology company, I might have put a question mark. But today, looking at these 209,000 monthly sales, seeing the 38% increase in the overseas market, and witnessing the tangible product launches behind names like Blue Whale, Tianshu, and Qiyuan, I think I can straighten out that question mark. For consumers, these grand narratives ultimately translate into a more fuel-efficient CS75, a better-handling Deepal, or a smarter Avatr. And this might just be the best proof of a car company's 'strategic correctness'.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.

The international energy situation continues to fluctuate, oil prices continue to rise, prompting Europeans to accept electric vehicles, and giving Chinese new energy vehicle brands new hope in Europe. According to foreign media reports, in April 2026, overall sales of Chinese automakers in the European market increased by 114% year-on-year, with SAIC Motor, BYD, and Chery emerging as the big winners.

While products are selling well, facing EU trade barriers and the global reality of excess capacity, Chinese top new and old automakers are also accelerating the layout of overseas production bases, landing localized production by acquiring and renovating idle capacity of traditional automakers in the US and Europe.

From export to sales to production, Chinese new energy vehicle brands going global are accelerating their advancement, expected to enter a new stage of reshaping the European automotive industry landscape.

SAIC Steady, Chery Aggressive, Chinese Cars Selling Big in Europe

On May 22, 2026, European automotive media cited the latest data from local market research firm Dataforce, stating April overall new car sales in Europe continued to recover, up 6.4% year-on-year, with the regional car market maintaining a steady recovery trend overall.

Due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, European oil prices have risen by about 20% since 2026, therefore, new energy models became the core driver pulling April growth in the European car market. Among them, pure electric vehicles performed the most prominently, with April sales increasing by 38% year-on-year, setting the highest single-month growth rate since 2026; Plug-in hybrid vehicle sales growth was 21%, and Hybrid vehicle sales growth also reached 15%.

European car users are accelerating their shift to new energy vehicles, which also created a perfect growth opportunity for Chinese car brands to accelerate expanding sales in the European market.

Data shows, in April 2026, overall sales of Chinese automakers in the European market doubled, surging 114% year-on-year. Among them, SAIC Motor sales in April were 30,074 vehicles, stably at the top of the Chinese automaker sales list, BYD single month sales were 28,186 vehicles ranking second, Chery April sales were 25,656 vehicles, ranking third. From a single-month performance perspective, the sales gap between the three Chinese automakers in the European market is also continuously narrowing.

In terms of sales growth rate, April European car market growth rate list was almost dominated by Chinese brands, Leapmotor growth rate was as high as 423%, Chery and BYD followed with year-on-year growth rates of 344% and 125% respectively, overall growth momentum was strong.

Among them, Chery became the Chinese automaker with the strongest growth explosiveness in the European market in April. Compared to April 2025, Chery sales increased by nearly 20,000 vehicles. Dataforce data shows, Chery brand April 2025 sales in Europe were only 4 vehicles, this April reached 5,446 vehicles; In addition, two sub-brands under Chery, Omoda and Jaecoo, both exerted force synchronously, all ranked in the forefront of European market sales growth, among them, Omoda growth ranked third in Europe, Jaecoo ranked sixth. Terminal market performance indicates Chery's layout in Europe has entered a stage of full-force exertion.

Because contrasting sharply with the high growth of Chinese brands is that some European local automakers and traditional car giants encountered sales decline in April. For example, Toyota dipped slightly 1% year-on-year, Renault declined 3%, Ford fell 11%, Hyundai decline reached 12%, Premium brand Porsche also surprisingly declined year-on-year to 17%, Mitsubishi decline was most prominent, reaching 51%.

European local giant Stellantis, which maintains close relations with Chinese automakers Leapmotor and Dongfeng, April sales achieved 4.3% year-on-year growth, but growth rate was lower than the overall European car market performance. Brand performance division within the group was significant, Leapmotor, Fiat, Opel/Vauxhall, Citroen maintained positive sales growth, while Peugeot and Alfa Romeo showed obvious sales decline.

If Chinese new energy vehicle new and old brands can continue this upward momentum, they will be expected to reshape the European market competition landscape.

Chinese Automakers on a Crazy Buying Spree, But Still Must Clear Union Hurdles

On one hand, multiple factors such as oil price hikes and new energy vehicle market transition overlap, leading to weak sales of traditional car giants in the European market. On the other hand, the manufacturing system left over from the fuel vehicle era is also gradually falling into the dilemma of idleness or excess capacity.

Consulting agencies predict, large numbers of low-utilization car factories in the US and Europe will face shutdown or transfer in the future, and the EU's measure of imposing additional import tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, will further promote Chinese automakers to accelerate the layout of European localized production.

In this context, taking over and renovating traditional automaker factories has become a core method for many Chinese automakers laying out overseas localized production. This phenomenon has also attracted foreign media attention, recently a European automotive media reported that BYD is currently negotiating with Stellantis and other European automakers to take over idle factories in the region. In fact, BYD announced building a factory in Hungary as early as the end of 2023, becoming the first Chinese automaker to build a passenger car factory in the EU.

BYD Hungary factory planned annual capacity is 300,000 vehicles, in 2025 BYD sales in the European market exceeded 187,000 vehicles, year-on-year increase of over 260% compared to 2024. Predicting according to the growth rate, BYD relying solely on one Hungary factory will be difficult to satisfy car sales needs in Europe, therefore rumors about negotiating factory purchase with local car makers are reasonable.

Chinese automakers full of ambition for the European market are not just BYD. Just in one month of May 2026, news has spread about multiple Chinese automakers negotiating European capacity cooperation projects. For example, on May 20, Stellantis Group announced cooperation negotiation with Dongfeng Group, planning to rely on France Rennes factory to achieve local production of Dongfeng new energy models. In addition, Leapmotor also revealed that Leapmotor International established as a joint venture with Stellantis, is expected to acquire Stellantis factory located in Madrid, Spain, quickly build a European local production base.

There is also news that Geely is also actively accelerating the acquisition of Ford Spain Valencia factory partial assembly production line; Xpeng was also exposed to be negotiating with Volkswagen Group, seeking to acquire its European idle capacity. There is also Chery cooperating with Spain Ebro Group to activate former Nissan old factory, currently production has been resumed, Chery models are about to be imported and landed.

Taking over and renovating European automakers' idle capacity, the benefit is avoiding industry duplicate construction, increase local European employment opportunities, conforming to industrial policy orientation, also can save more time and improve efficiency compared to completely self-building factories.

However, what needs to be reminded to Chinese automakers is, buying spree does not mean permanent security, behind it also hides great risks.

Also recently, after news spread about Volkswagen Group and Xpeng negotiating idle capacity sales, Volkswagen Group union head (Daniela Cavallo) stood before tens of thousands of workers, heatedly criticized group management, and strongly opposed management negotiating with Chinese automakers etc. third parties to yield idle capacity.

Under this pressure, Volkswagen Group CEO (Oliver Blume) publicly stated, currently, Volkswagen has not had any negotiations with Chinese manufacturers regarding using European factory capacity, in the future there are absolutely no related cooperation plans.

Compared to emerging markets such as Southeast Asia, Middle East, Africa with high inclusivity to Chinese automakers, mature European car market regulations, unions, environmental protection, employment commitments etc. constraints conditions are more severe, Chinese automakers landing localization through the method of acquiring factories, besides renovating production lines, adapting supply chains, more need to adapt to local rules, adapt to local culture to survive better.

Of course, self-built factories can fully fit the automaker's own manufacturing standards, supply chain systems, and production concepts, autonomy control is stronger, but this also suits fund-adequate, layout pace controllable automakers to go for long-term layout. From this level, currently BYD's capacity layout in Europe fits long-term + short-term coordination better, globally, besides negotiating qualified old factories in major markets for renovation, BYD has landed at least 4 self-built complete vehicle factories in places like Thailand, Hungary, Turkey.

European new energy vehicle sales significantly increased, brought development opportunities to Chinese automakers eager to go global, however European complex emotions on Chinese automaker acquiring factories, again makes Chinese automakers' Europe road full of difficulties. Actually, this round of global automotive capacity restructuring led by Chinese automakers, reflects structural transfer of industry discourse power in the new energy vehicle era.

Fuel vehicle era, US/EU/Japan/Korea automakers dominated global car technical routes, capacity configuration and industry rules, under the wave of smart electrification, relying on complete new energy supply chain, mature three-electric and intelligent technology, efficient capacity system, Chinese automakers are upgrading from product export to full-scale overseas presence of capacity, technology, standards, expected to reshape the European and even global automotive industry landscape.

(Source: autonews.com, reuters.com, bloomberg.com)

In May, China's automotive market overall presented a gentle recovery trend, with domestic brands still being the sales backbone of the market. Recently, BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall, the top 5 domestic automakers, successively released their monthly performance reports. From the data, these five companies show a general characteristic of "stable total growth, divergence between domestic and international markets, and accelerated new energy penetration". Overseas exports and new energy vehicles have become the most core growth engines; export business has evolved from a "bonus item" to the "core foundation" for some companies. BYD's "dominant leader" status is further consolidated, Chery achieved high growth via exports, Geely's new energy penetration rate broke 56%, Changan focused steadily on balanced development, while Great Wall appeared slightly under pressure during structural transformation.

BYD: Export Hits New High Becomes Biggest Highlight

In May, BYD stood firmly at the top of domestic brands with a monthly sales volume of 383,500 vehicles, maintaining positive growth both year-on-year and month-over-month under a large base. Its two main brands, Dynasty and Ocean, sold a combined 330,200 vehicles, contributing 86.1% of total sales; Fangchengbao's monthly sales broke 30,000 units to reach 30,200, a year-on-year increase of 139.7%, setting a new high for the year; Denza sold 16,300 vehicles, and Yangwang delivered 286 vehicles. From a model perspective, BYD had eight models in May with monthly sales exceeding 20,000 vehicles. The Song Family and Yuan Family both broke 50,000 units, selling 51,370 and 56,691 vehicles respectively. The Sea Lion Family followed closely with 42,615 vehicles, and Seagull sales were also close to 40,000 vehicles.

BYD's biggest highlight in May was exports. Overseas new energy vehicle sales reached 160,600 units, an 80.4% year-on-year increase, accounting for about 42%. The sharp expansion of export scale effectively countered the phased weakness in domestic demand. Cumulative exports from January to May exceeded 620,000 vehicles. High export growth mainly benefited from continued ramping up of overseas factory capacity, improved ocean shipping capacity, and accelerated channel network expansion. In the domestic market, BYD promoted Megawatt Super Charging and intelligent strategies simultaneously—Megawatt charging achieved about 90% charge in 9 minutes; 20,000 super charging stations are planned to be built by 2026; all series models are available with Sky Eye B intelligent driving solutions and city navigation safety fallback plans, accelerating the popularization of high-level intelligent driving. As Gen 2 Blade Battery capacity gradually releases, the company's orders are expected to continue rising.

Chery: Sales Growth Leads the Top 5

Chery Group's total sales volume in May was 247,800 vehicles, a significant year-on-year increase of 20.5%, ranking first in growth speed among the top 5. Exports remained its most core growth engine—May exports reached 181,900 vehicles, an 80.5% year-on-year increase, accounting for 73.4% of total sales that month, continuously breaking the single-month export record for Chinese brands for three months. In terms of new energy, Chery New Energy sold 100,300 vehicles, a 58.8% year-on-year increase. April and May consecutively saw monthly new energy sales breaking 100,000 vehicles.

The strong performance in exports benefited from Chery's long-term deep cultivation of overseas channel advantages and localized operation capabilities. While overseas orders continued to rise, high export growth formed a sharp contrast with domestic sales—Chery's domestic sales in May were only 60,000 vehicles, accounting for one-quarter of total sales. From cumulative data, Chery Group accumulated 1.101 million sales from January to May, but against the annual goal of 3.2 million vehicles, monthly averages need to reach about 420,000 vehicles later, and pressure remains significant.

Geely: New Energy Penetration Rate Breaks 56%

Geely Auto's total sales volume in May was 237,600 vehicles, a 1% year-on-year increase, achieving month-over-month double growth for three consecutive months. In terms of structure, Geely's "New Four Transformations" transformation showed significant results: new energy vehicle sales reached 133,400 units, accounting for 56% of total sales, with new energy share exceeding 50% for four consecutive months.

From sub-brands, performance was significantly divergent. Zeekr brand sales in May reached 34,400 vehicles, a 82% year-on-year increase; Zeekr 9 Series and 8 Series models combined sales approached 50% of total sales, showing bright performance in the high-end market; Galaxy brand sales were 81,700 vehicles; Geely brand sales were 182,500 vehicles, among which China Star Series sales reached 100,800 vehicles; Lynk & Co brand sales were 20,700 vehicles, with new energy vehicle sales share rising to 71%.

In terms of exports, Geely's overseas vehicle exports in May reached 85,100 vehicles, a explosive 184% year-on-year increase, setting a brand single-month export record high. Among exported products, new energy vehicles reached 40,800 units, accounting for nearly half; hybrid and pure electric products have successively landed in Southeast Asia, Middle East, Latin America, and other markets, highlighting the results of global strategy implementation.

Changan: Multi-brand Matrix Balanced Effort

Changan Auto's delivery volume in May was 209,100 vehicles, among which new energy deliveries were 92,400 vehicles, a 5.8% year-on-year increase, with new energy share about 44%. In terms of exports, overseas deliveries reached 70,700 vehicles, a 38% year-on-year increase, becoming another major growth highlight for Changan in May.

In the sub-brand matrix, Changan Qiyuan delivered 34,500 vehicles in May; All-New Q05 delivered 15,800 units, with orders breaking 3,000 units within three days of listing in Thailand; Deepal sales in May were 33,200 vehicles, a 30% year-on-year increase; January to May overseas cumulative sales were 28,700 vehicles, a significant 167% year-on-year increase; Avatr delivered 7,336 vehicles in May; Changan Auto (Gravity) delivered nearly 49,000 vehicles in May.

Changan Auto's balanced layout was fully reflected in May: the fuel car base remained stable, new energy brands Deepal and Qiyuan accelerated volume growth, high-end brand Avatr continued to break through in technical cooperation, and overseas markets simultaneously achieved breakthrough growth. The pattern of five brands working together, driven by both new energy and exports, is initially taking shape.

Great Wall: Overseas Sales Growth Year-on-Year 46.75%

Great Wall Motor's sales in May were 100,400 vehicles, slightly down compared to last May's 102,200 vehicles, making it the only company among the top 5 to show a year-on-year negative growth. From sub-brands, Haval brand sales in May were 55,500 vehicles, remaining Great Wall's most important sales pillar; Tank brand sales were 17,100 vehicles; both Haval and Tank brand sales showed year-on-year declines; Wey brand sold 8,119 vehicles, a 31.78% year-on-year increase, achieving growth against the trend; Ora brand performance was most stunning, with sales of 6,018 vehicles, a significant 206.88% year-on-year increase. In terms of new energy, Great Wall sold 30,400 new energy vehicles in May, with new energy vehicle transformation gradually accelerating.

The overseas market became Great Wall's biggest highlight in May, with overseas sales growing 46.75% year-on-year. Against the background of pressure on the domestic market, strong growth in overseas business effectively made up for the decline in the domestic market. Great Wall Motor's current core contradiction lies in: Haval and Tank, the two traditional main-selling brands, face weak growth, while Wey and Ora brands, although growing notably, have relatively small volume and are not yet enough to support overall growth. How to complete the "relay" between old and new brands is the key issue Great Wall must solve subsequently.

Final Thoughts

From May data, the growth pattern of the top 5 domestic brands has clearly diverged, but there are three common trends worth noting: First, exports have become a key engine for domestic brands to seek stability and growth. Second, new energy transformation is still accelerating, but paths differ among enterprises. Third, technological innovation continues to deepen brand moats. Looking ahead to the second half of the year, competition in the automotive industry will continue to upgrade around these three trends. Although everyone has a common direction, these three trends are all competing for the entire enterprise's industrial chain strength, and the strong will remain strong, which has almost become an inevitable outcome.