In May 2026, good news came from the domestic new energy vehicle market. The market continued to pick up and exports maintained a high growth trend.
According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, domestic new energy vehicle (including commercial) production in May was 1.554 million units, a year-on-year increase of 22.4%, and a month-on-month increase of 17.7%; sales volume was 1.496 million units, a year-on-year increase of 14.4%, and a month-on-month increase of 11.3%.
Among them, 446,000 units were exported, a year-on-year/month-on-month increase of 110.4%/3.8% respectively. Overseas demand continues to be strong.
According to the Passenger Car Association, domestic new energy passenger vehicles were sold in May at wholesale of 1.352 million units, a year-on-year increase of 10.6% and a month-on-month increase of 10.3%. The penetration rate reached 61.1%, a month-on-month increase of 3.5pct.
Retail sales in May were 950,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 7.5% and a month-on-month increase of 12.4%; the penetration rate was 62.9%, a month-on-month increase of 1.6pct.
Exports were 424,000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 112.6% and a month-on-month increase of 4.4%; the penetration rate was 54.1%, a month-on-month increase of 1.4pct.
From a grade perspective, B-class and above new energy passenger vehicle retail sales accounted for 54.1% in May, a month-on-month increase of 1.8pct to maintain a high level. This is mainly due to the acceleration of passenger vehicle sales to mid-to-high grades under the 2026 trade-in policy.
The proportion of Grade A decreased by 0.8pct from the previous month to 25.2%; the proportion of A0 + A00 decreased by 1.0pct from the previous month to 20.7%.
The sales volume of Class A was 244,000 units, the sales volume of Class B and above was 524,000 units, and the sales volume of A00+A0 was 201,000 units.
In terms of models, BYD Song ranked first with 76,000 sales (a month-on-month increase of 12.6%) and a market share of 5.6% (a month-on-month increase of 0.6pct).
Tesla Model Y, BYD Yuan UP, and BYD Seagull ranked second, third, and fourth respectively, with sales of 55,000, 41,000, and 40,000 units respectively, with month-on-month increases of 5.0%, 27.0%, and 46.7% respectively. The market shares were 4.1%, 3.1%, and 3.0% respectively, and the month-on-month sales were -0.2pct, +0.4pct, and +0.8pct.
In terms of car companies, BYD maintained its first place with a sales volume of 377,000 units, a month-on-month increase of 20.0%, and a market share of 27.9%, a month-on-month increase of 2.3pct.
Geely Automobile ranked second, with sales of 131,000 units, a month-on-month increase of 168.0%, and a market share of 9.7%, a month-on-month increase of 5.7pct.
Chery Automobile ranked third, with sales of 95,000 units, a month-on-month increase of 63.7%, and a market share of 7.0%, a month-on-month increase of 2.3pct.
In terms of exports, 446,000 new energy vehicles were exported (according to the China Automobile Association), a year-on-year increase of 110.4% and a month-on-month increase of 3.8%, maintaining a high growth trend, and overseas demand continues to be strong.
Among them, Tesla exported 38,700 vehicles, a month-on-month decrease of 27.7% and a year-on-year increase of 67.7%.
For the full year of 2026, sales are expected to be 18.27 million units, a year-on-year increase of 11%, of which passenger car export sales are 5.46 million units, a year-on-year increase of 126%.
However, the market also faces some risks.
The production and sales of downstream new energy vehicles may be lower than expected. The sales side may be affected by policy fluctuations and weak demand. The output side may be affected by sharp fluctuations in upstream raw material prices, power restrictions, import restrictions, etc.
The higher-than-expected rise in raw material prices will also have a greater impact on terminal demand and the profitability of companies related to the industry chain.
In addition, the slower than expected progress of key projects in the lithium battery industry chain will affect current and long-term performance, as well as the stability of the industry chain.
