Sales of Chinese-made vehicles flat in January

Geely’s popular Emgrand sedan.

Sales of Chinese-made vehicles, including exports, declined slightly to 2.42 million units in January from 2.44 million units a year earlier, according to passenger car and commercial vehicle wholesale data collected by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).

This was the first year-on-year sales decline in four months, after the Chinese government stepped up its stimulus measures last year, and was due mainly to the extended Lunar New Year holidays. Compared with peak volumes in December, sales in January plunged by over 30%, however.

Sales in January were underpinned by a 6% rise in exports to 470,000 units, while domestic sales fell by just over 2% to 1.95 million units.

Sales of new energy vehicles (NEVs), comprising mainly electric (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs), rose by 29% year-on-year to 944,000 units in January, including a 50% jump in exports to 150,000 units. Compared with December volumes, which surged by 34% year-on-year to 1.596 million units, NEV sales in January fell by 41%.

Sales of Chinese-made BEVs rose by 29% to 574,000 units in January, while PHEV sales rose by 30% to 370,000 units.

CAAM expects total vehicle sales of Chinese-made vehicles to rise by 5% to 32.9 million units in 2025, after growing by 4.5% to 31.4 million units in 2024, while NEV sales are forecast to rise by 24% to 16 million units.

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Manufacturer performances

Zhejiang Geely Holding Group’s global sales across all brands rose by 15% to 330,782 units in January 2025, driven by a 60% increase in electric and hybrid vehicle sales to 152,315 units. This includes sales by its Swedish subsidiary Volvo Cars, which increased by 17% to 50,820 units.

BYD’s global sales rose by 49% to 300,538 units in January, with sales of passenger PHEVs surging by 79% to 171,069 units last month, while BEVs rose by 19% to 125,377 units and commercial vehicle sales jumped eightfold to 4,092 units.

SAIC Motor reported an 8% increase in global sales to 264,166 units in January, driven by a 120% jump in SAIC-GM-Wuling’s deliveries to 77,000 units. SAIC-VW’s sales dropped by 21% to 75,150 units, while SAIC-GM’s sales were down by 7% at 33,641 units from depressed year-earlier levels. Overseas sales increased by 7% to 68,916 units, thanks mainly to strong deliveries in India, while global NEV sales dropped by 5% to 61,098 units.

GAC Group, including its joint ventures with Toyota and Honda, reported a26% sales decline to 116,345 units in January, while Great Wall Motor’s sales fell by 22% to 80,933 units.

Tesla’s shipments from its Shanghai plant fell by 11% to 63,238 units last month, with production for the local market down by 15% at 33,703 units while output for export fell by 6% to 29,535 units. The company introduced a revised Model Y in China in December.

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