Chinese Automakers Surge In UK As Tesla, Ford Sputter: BYD Leads 2,700% Sales Increase In May

Chinese automakers including BYD Co Ltd BYDDY BYDDF gained ground in the United Kingdom in May as American automakers including EV giant Tesla Inc TSLA and Ford Motor Co F faltered.

What Happened: As per data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), 596 vehicles from BYD were registered in the U.K. in May, marking a nearly 2,700% jump from last year.

SAIC Motor-owned MG saw registrations jump nearly 15% to 7,223 units while Great Wall Motor‘s Ora brand witnessed a near 206% jump in registrations to 101 units.

U.S. automakers Ford and Tesla, however, did not fare well. Tesla registrations slumped 8% to 3,152 units while Ford registrations fell 31% to 7,520 units in May. Through 2024, Tesla registrations in the UK slumped nearly 12.6% as of the end of May while Ford registrations fell nearly 16%.

Why It Matters: Chinese automakers have been focused on increasing their market share in foreign markets amid an economic slowdown at home.

The increased competition among EV brands in the country has also given rise to an intense price war with EV makers including BYD slashing prices to retain market share.

Western nations including the EU and the U.S. are concerned that the low prices on Chinese EVs may harm domestic players.

While the U.S. quadrupled tariffs on EV imports from China to over 100% earlier in May, the EU is currently investigating China subsidies and considering hiking tariffs.

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