BYD’s sales soar as Chinese carmaker captures world’s attention

BYD’s sales last year surpassed the $100 billion mark, leapfrogging Elon Musk’s Tesla on revenue, as the Chinese auto giant wows consumers with a range of electric and hybrid cars packed with high-tech features. Shenzhen-based BYD reported revenue of 777 billion RMB ($107 billion) for the 12 months ended December 31, according to a filing late today, beating estimates for 766 billion RMB. Tesla’s 2024 revenue was $97.7 billion. Net income rose 34% year-on-year to 40.3 billion RMB, beating analyst estimates for 39.5 billion RMB. BYD has risen quickly to the top of China’s car market — the world’s biggest and most competitive in terms of electric vehicles. This year alone, BYD has unveiled a new ecosystem that allows EVs to charge for 400 kilometers in just five minutes and introduced advanced driver assistance technology in even its most basic models. Investors have sent its shares to a record and BYD’s Hong Kong-listed stock is up around 51% this year. By the numbers: BYD vs Tesla BYD also sells about the same number of EVs as Tesla — 1.76 million in 2024 versus 1.79 million — but, when all of its other passenger hybrid car sales are included, it’s much larger. BYD’s total deliveries last year climbed to 4.27 million, almost as much as Ford Motor. BYD has forecast it can sell between 5 million to 6 million vehicles this year. It’s already off to a strong start, with sales in the first two months of 2025 up 93% YoY to 623,300 units. One area where Tesla still clearly leads however is market valuation. The U.S. carmaker is worth about $800 billion despite a share-price rout that’s seen the stock plunge 38% this year. BYD has a market capitalization closer to $157 billion. Musk’s EV maker also makes more money on an absolute basis; Tesla’s net income last year was $7.6 billion. Regional performance: Where BYD dominates But whereas Tesla is losing in China — shipments have been backsliding there for the past five consecutive months on a year-on-year basis — BYD is winning. China is still far and away BYD’s biggest market, where it commands a share of almost 15%, not just for new-energy vehicles but any sort of passenger car. BYD doesn’t sell passenger cars in the U.S. yet due to punitive tariffs on made-in-China automobiles, but it’s made big inroads into markets in Europe, places in Asia like Singapore and Thailand, as well as Australia. By Danny Lee

BYD’s sales soar as Chinese carmaker captures world’s attention

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Published March 24, 2025

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BYD’s sales soar as Chinese carmaker captures world’s attention