Tesla China exported 50,644 vehicles in January, as per data released by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). This marks a notable increase both year-on-year and month-on-month for the American EV maker's Giga Shanghai-built Model 3 and Model Y. The figure also places Tesla China second among new energy vehicle exporters for the month, behind BYD. The CPCA's national passenger car market analysis report indicated that total New Energy Vehicle exports reached 286,000 units in January, up 103.6% from a year earlier.
After years of rapid growth, EV sales in China grew a modest 1% in January, mainly due to the expiration of subsidies in December and the introduction of a new purchase tax in the new year. BYD, the country's dominant automaker that spearheaded China's EV boom, was hit the hardest. Its sales dropped 30% year over year to just over 210,000 units due to changing EV policies and rising competition.
The secret to BYD's success is simple: The company makes high-tech electric and hybrid cars and sells them at incredible prices. The tiny BYD Seagull costs as little as $8,000 in China, and it's a megahit in several countries. The Chinese car industry-not just BYD but also its many competitors that also make affordable cars-is quickly taking over the world.
The Seal U sold over 70,000 units in 2025, and it has a lot to do with the price. China missed a top spot on the list of best-selling electric cars in Europe last year, but it made up for it in the plug-in hybrid segment. That's because the BYD Seal U, a crossover that's roughly the same size as a Tesla Model Y, secured the top spot on that list.
The Yangwang U9 Extreme is the fastest car in the world. After hitting 308.4mph (496.22kph) in September 2025, it bloodied the noses of Koenigsegg, Rimac, Bugatti, and plenty of others, while making EV cynics raise an eyebrow. The Extreme comes with 2,978 horsepower, while the base U9 makes do with just' 1288. As I found out on a custom-built test track in China, that's still plenty. Driving it was impressive, but it may have a tough job convincing traditional sports/supercar
But it's hard to find those vehicles in North America. One month before he opened this year's United Nations climate summit, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva helped open a new mega-factory at the site of a former Ford car manufacturing plant. The new plant, in Brazil's Camacari, Bahia, is one of many being built around the world by China's BYD, the world's largest manufacturer of electric cars.
China's largest electric automaker has been slowing down a bit at home. The market is crowded and EV manufacturers are tripping over one another in a seemingly never-ending price war. But these days, BYD has its eyes set on something biggersomething harder to achieve. The rising star wants to take over the world, and that starts with one of the most important targets: Europe. Let's dig into how things are going on that front.
Whenever I attend an international launch for a new Chinese car, I can't help overhearing what other English-speaking journalists are talking about. Some are still making jokes about the Chinese car industry, like it's still 2010, and Western automakers still dominate technology and sales. However, it's 2025, and China's largest carmaker, BYD, sells more plug-in cars than anyone else on Earth and boasts some of the fastest-charging and most advanced electric vehicles in the world.
Wang Chuanfu, the 59-year-old CEO of BYD, wanted to demonstrate the safety and cleanliness of the batteries developed by his company during a meeting with Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett's company. He did this by drinking a glass of the electrolyte liquid from one of them. The Hathaway crew was stunned. Was this man an idiot or a genius? Years later, having become the richest man in China, the verdict is clear.
Tesla's biggest rival in China, BYD, saw its sales slip for the first time in over 18 months amid China's bruising EV price wars. The Chinese automaker said in an exchange filing on Wednesday that it sold 396,270 cars in September, a 5.5% decline from the 419,426 cars it sold a year earlier. The last time BYD saw a sales drop was in February 2024. That month, BYD sold 122,311 cars, a nearly 37% drop from the 193,655 cars it sold in February 2023.
