Warren Buffett Backed BYD Forays Malaysia With $113M Deal

BYD Co, Ltd BYDDF BYDDY, the Chinese EV company backed by Warren Buffett, forged a 500 million ringgit ($113 million) tie-up with Sime Darby Motors Sdn Bhd as it made its electric vehicle debut in Malaysia.
Sime Darby will be BYD's exclusive distributor in Malaysia, with the first showroom to open later this month, Bloomberg reports.
They plan to have 20 dealerships by next year and 40 by 2024.
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BYD will introduce its flagship Atto 3 to the Malaysian market, with the standard model priced at 148,800 ringgit and the extended-range version at 167,800 ringgit.
BYD's growing list of export destinations now stretches from North to Southeast Asia, Australia, and Europe to Latin America.
BYD's foreign markets included Brazil, Chile, Germany, Israel, Japan, and India.
Thailand, and more broadly Southeast Asia, has become a new battleground for EV makers, especially as Chinese brands explore international territories to fuel growth.
Related: Tesla initiated bookings for its cars in Thailand, Southeast Asia's largest market for passenger electric cars
Related ETF: iShares Self-driving EV and Tech ETF (IDRV), which holds companies in the EV and self-driving tech space, has lost 32.40% year-to-date.
Price Action: BYDDF shares traded higher by 6.55% at $26.20 in the premarket on the last check Thursday.