Tesla rivals BYD, XPeng, Nio, Zeekr, Li Auto and Xiaomi reported January deliveries, with XPeng and Xiaomi standing out.
Tesla does not release monthly China sales, but industry data will provide that later this month.
XPeng stock jumped while BYD edged higher. Other China EV makers and Tesla fell Monday as global markets sold off on Trump trade war fears.
XPeng stood out with a relatively small drop-off vs. December and booming EV sales vs. a year earlier. Handset giant Xiaomi, which only began selling EVs last spring, showed continued momentum in January. But Li Auto and Zeekr showed year-over-year declines.
The January-February is easily the weakest period for China EV sales due to the extended Chinese New Year holidays following the year-end crunch. Tens of millions of Chinese travel to visit family while factories shut down. In 2025, the Year Of The Snake began on Jan. 29. In 2024, the CNY holiday began on Feb. 10. So this year's holiday has a greater impact in January.
BYD Sales
BYD sold 300,538 vehicles in January, down 41.6% vs. December but up 47.5% vs. a year earlier. Overseas sales of passenger vehicles hit a new high of 66,336, up 84% vs. a year earlier. BYD exports and overseas production are expected to keep surging this year.
BYD sells fully battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), selling far more of the latter in 2024. But BYD still topped Tesla in BEV sales in Q4 2024.
BYD announced plans for several new models to be launched over the next several weeks.
XPeng Sales
Xpeng delivered 30,350 vehicles in January, down just 17.3% vs. December and up 267.9% vs. a year earlier. Monthly sales topped Li Auto's for the first time in two years.
The Mona M03 small sedan, the first EV from the new, more affordable Mona sub-brand, topped 15,000 deliveries once again.
XPeng sells only BEVs, but intends to also make extended range electric vehicles (EREVs) – essentially a form of PHEVs – in 2025.
Nio Sales
Nio delivered 13,863 EVs in January, down 55.5% vs. December but up 37.8% vs. a year earlier.
The EV maker on Saturday joined Tesla in offering five-year, 0% loans for anyone putting down a deposit. In January, Nio started a three-year, 0% financing program. Nio also is offering 20,000 kilometers worth of free battery swaps, or 48 free swaps, up from 20 previously.
Nio sells only BEVs.
China EV Sales: Li Auto
Li Auto delivered 29,927 EVs in January, off 48.85% vs. December and down 4% vs. January 2024.
Li Auto sells mostly EREVs, but also a few BEVs.
Zeekr Sales
Zeekr deliveries in January were 11,942, down 56% vs. December and 4.75% vs. a year earlier. Zeekr is a unit of China auto giant Geely.
Zeekr will expand into PHEVs in 2025.
Xiaomi Sales
Xiaomi didn't give specific figures, but said deliveries topped 20,000 for a fourth straight month. The SU7, a Tesla Model 3 rival with a lot of buzz, began deliveries last April. Xiaomi is targeting 2025 deliveries of 300,000. It's expected to launch the YU7, a Model Y rival, in June or July. Both are BEV models.
China EV Stocks
XPeng stock jumped 5% Monday to 15.98, hitting a fresh 52-week high and now extended from a 14.66 double-bottom buy point. Shares rose 3.7% to 15.22 last week.
Li Auto stock fell 1.3%, but off early lows to regain the 200-day line and back around its 50-day. Shares edged up 0.9% last week to 23.42. Shares are in the lower half of a base going back to early October with a 31.04 buy point.
Nio stock slumped 3.2%. Shares. inched up 0.7% last week to 4.32, but hit resistance at a long-sliding 50-day line.
Zeekr stock gave up 1.5% Monday. Shares advanced 0.7% to 26.14 last week, falling back below the 50-day line on Friday. Zeekr stock, which had a U.S. IPO last May, hit a record 32.76 on Dec. 26, but that breakout immediately failed.
Xiaomi stock fell 1.6%. Shares. jumped 6.5% to 25.20 last week, even with Friday's 7.4% tumble. Xiaomi trades over the counter in the U.S., making it prone to mini-gaps up and down.
BYD stock, also over the counter in the U.S., rose 0.6% to 35.24 Monday. Shares edged down 0.55% to 35.02 last week, falling 2.6% on Friday. Shares are holding their 50-day line in a base with a 42 buy point. Investors could use 36.50 or 37 as early entries.
Tesla stock fell 4.8% to 385.29, off early lows but below the 50-day line. Shares dipped 0.5% to 404.60 last week, after briefly teasing an aggressive entry intraday Friday. Shares have a traditional buy point of 488.53. Tesla reported weak earnings on Wednesday and signaled a lackluster 2025, but Elon Musk said robotaxi ride-hailing will begin this June in Austin, Texas.
Please follow Ed Carson on Threads at @edcarson1971 and X/Twitter at @IBD_ECarson for stock market updates and more.
