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South China Morning Post
13 hours ago
- Automotive
- South China Morning Post
‘Full of gunpowder': new price wars among China carmakers mask hidden dangers, Beijing warns
Beijing has amplified its warnings over cutthroat price wars among carmakers as deflationary pressure persists in the world's second-largest economy, and economists say a reflation is likely to remain elusive. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), party mouthpieces and a carmaker association aired concerns at the weekend over recent discounts offered by manufacturers, while collectively deeming price wars a threat to product quality and the long-term development of the industry. 'Uncontrolled price wars among businesses are a classic example of 'involutionary' competition. They hinder companies' sustained investment in research and development, ultimately affecting product quality, performance and service levels,' the MIIT was quoted as saying on Saturday by the state-run Xinhua. 'There are no winners in price wars, and certainly no future.' 'Involution', or neijuan , refers to excessive competition for limited resources or opportunities. The ministry also vowed to step up governance over such competition in the industry. Echoing the ministry's call, People's Daily admonished the industry in a commentary on Sunday, describing the domestic carmaking sector as being in a 'sub-healthy' state, pointing to its shrinking profit margin in the face of industrial overcapacity.
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Straits Times
BYD faces growing backlash over EV price war as May sales jump
HONG KONG – BYD shares continued their plunge despite monthly sales climbing to the highest in 2025 as the steep discounts the industry uses to entice buyers draws scrutiny from Beijing. The electric car manufacturer sold 382,476 vehicles last month, including 376,930 passenger cars, according to a statement on June 1. While that marked a high point for 2025, the year-on-year growth of 15 per cent was the slowest since August 2020, except for a drop in deliveries in February 2024 that coincided with a broad slump due to the Lunar New Year holiday. Despite the sales boost, BYD stock dropped almost 5 per cent in Hong Kong on June 2, which follows a more than 15 per cent slump last week, after a series of reports over the weekend indicated the industry's lengthy price war has caught the attention of the government. In a commentary on June 1, the People's Daily – the mouthpiece of China's Communist Party – criticized the 'rat-race competition' and warned that price wars can seriously affect supply-chain security. Low-priced and low-quality products would seriously damage the international reputation of 'Made-in-China', it said, without naming any specific companies. Also over the weekend, China's automobile industry association warned against 'vicious competition' that would hurt profit margins, impair product quality and hinder the healthy development of the industry. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology agreed with that stance and will step up measures to root out unhealthy competition in in the auto sector and protect market order and consumer rights, media outlet Cailian reported. BYD has led the bruising price war that's engulfed China's auto industry, hurting profit and clouding the outlook for the fast-growing sector that leads the rest of the world in EV technology. The latest round of discounting came late last month, when BYD cut prices as much as 34 per cent in a move that was followed by rivals including Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology and Geely Automobile Holdings. Leapmotor sold 45,067 vehicles in May, up 148 per cent year on year, while Geely Auto's deliveries increased 46 per cent to 235,208 units. Meanwhile Xpeng saw sales triple in May, driven largely by its mass-market MONA M03 model. Notably, BYD's battery passenger electric vehicle sales of 204,369 topped its plug-in hybrid sales of 172,561, only the second time pure EV sales have been in front since early 2024. The company is also ramping up overseas sales, delivering more than 89,000 units in May, its highest on record. Analysts at Citigroup estimated that after BYD's discounts, traffic to its dealerships may have surged between 30 per cent to 40 per cent week on week. So far this year, BYD has sold 1.76 million units against a full-year target of 5.5 million. Morgan Stanley analysts including Tim Hsiao estimate that sales would need to average about 534,000 units per month for the rest of 2025 to reach its goal. The fourth quarter is typically a strong one for all carmakers as they try to move stock before the end of the calendar year. BLOOMBERG Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Business Times
BYD faces growing backlash over EV price war as May sales jump
[HONG KONG] BYD shares continued their plunge despite monthly sales climbing to the highest this year as the steep discounts the industry uses to entice buyers draws scrutiny from Beijing. The electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer sold 382,476 vehicles last month, including 376,930 passenger cars, according to a statement on Sunday (Jun 1). While that marked a high point for this year, the year-on-year growth of 15 per cent was the slowest since August 2020, except for a drop in deliveries in February last year that coincided with a broad slump due to the Chinese New Year holiday. Despite the sales boost, BYD stock dropped almost 5 per cent in Hong Kong, which follows a more than 15 per cent slump last week, after a series of reports over the weekend indicated the industry's lengthy price war has caught the attention of the government. In a commentary on Sunday, the People's Daily – the mouthpiece of China's Communist Party – criticised the 'rat-race competition' and warned that price wars can seriously affect supply-chain security. Low-priced and low-quality products would seriously damage the international reputation of 'Made-in-China', it said, without naming any specific companies. Also over the weekend, China's automobile industry association warned against 'vicious competition' that would hurt profit margins, impair product quality and hinder the healthy development of the industry. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology agreed with that stance and will step up measures to root out unhealthy competition in in the auto sector and protect market order and consumer rights, media outlet Cailian reported. BYD has led the bruising price war that's engulfed China's auto industry, hurting profit and clouding the outlook for the fast-growing sector that leads the rest of the world in EV technology. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up The latest round of discounting came late last month, when BYD cut prices as much as 34 per cent in a move that was followed by rivals including Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology and Geely Automobile Holdings. Leapmotor sold 45,067 vehicles in May, up 148 per cent year-on-year, while Geely Auto's deliveries increased 46 per cent to 235,208 units. Meanwhile, Xpeng saw sales triple in May, driven largely by its mass-market MONA M03 model. Notably, BYD's battery passenger EV sales of 204,369 topped its plug-in hybrid sales of 172,561, only the second time pure EV sales have been in front since early 2024. The company is also ramping up overseas sales, delivering more than 89,000 units in May, its highest on record. Analysts at Citigroup estimated that after BYD's discounts, traffic to its dealerships may have surged between 30 to 40 per cent week-on-week. So far this year, BYD has sold 1.76 million units against a full-year target of 5.5 million. Morgan Stanley analysts including Tim Hsiao estimate that sales would need to average about 534,000 units per month for the rest of 2025 to reach its goal. The fourth quarter is typically a strong one for all carmakers as they try to move stock before the end of the calendar year. BLOOMBERG
Mint
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Mint
BYD Faces Growing Backlash Over EV Price War as May Sales Jump
BYD Co. shares continued their plunge despite monthly sales climbing to the highest this year as the steep discounts the industry uses to entice buyers draws scrutiny from Beijing. The electric vehicle manufacturer sold 382,476 vehicles last month, including 376,930 passenger cars, according to a statement Sunday. While that marked a high point for this year, the year-on-year growth of 15% was the slowest since August 2020, except for a drop in deliveries in February last year that coincided with a broad slump due to the Lunar New Year holiday. Despite the sales boost, BYD stock dropped almost 5% in Hong Kong, which follows a more than 15% slump last week, after a series of reports over the weekend indicated the industry's lengthy price war has caught the attention of the government. In a commentary on Sunday, the People's Daily — the mouthpiece of China's Communist Party — criticized the 'rat-race competition' and warned that price wars can seriously affect supply-chain security. Low-priced and low-quality products would seriously damage the international reputation of 'Made-in-China', it said, without naming any specific companies. Also over the weekend, China's automobile industry association warned against 'vicious competition' that would hurt profit margins, impair product quality and hinder the healthy development of the industry. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology agreed with that stance and will step up measures to root out unhealthy competition in in the auto sector and protect market order and consumer rights, media outlet Cailian reported. BYD has led the bruising price war that's engulfed China's auto industry, hurting profit and clouding the outlook for the fast-growing sector that leads the rest of the world in EV technology. The latest round of discounting came late last month, when BYD cut prices as much as 34% in a move that was followed by rivals including Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology Co. and Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd. Leapmotor sold 45,067 vehicles in May, up 148% year-on-year, while Geely Auto's deliveries increased 46% to 235,208 units. Meanwhile Xpeng Inc. saw sales triple in May, driven largely by its mass-market MONA M03 model. Notably, BYD's battery passenger electric vehicle sales of 204,369 topped its plug-in hybrid sales of 172,561, only the second time pure EV sales have been in front since early 2024. The company is also ramping up overseas sales, delivering more than 89,000 units in May, its highest on record. Analysts at Citigroup estimated that after BYD's discounts, traffic to its dealerships may have surged between 30% to 40% week-on-week. So far this year, BYD has sold 1.76 million units against a full-year target of 5.5 million. Morgan Stanley analysts including Tim Hsiao estimate that sales would need to average about 534,000 units per month for the rest of 2025 to reach its goal. The fourth quarter is typically a strong one for all carmakers as they try to move stock before the end of the calendar year. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
The Star
5 days ago
- Business
- The Star
2025 China-Central Asia Media Cooperation Forum held in Astana
ASTANA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The 2025 China-Central Asia Media Cooperation Forum was held Thursday in Astana, Kazakhstan, with the theme of building a closer China-Central Asia community with a shared future. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev sent a congratulatory letter to the forum. Tokayev said in the letter that the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping has won wide recognition from the international community as a strategic concept to promote global cooperation. "Kazakhstan attaches great importance to developing friendly relations with China," Tokayev said. "This forum aims to deepen the integration and cooperation between China and Central Asian countries. It is an important event based on consensus and trust in the media field and dedicated to strengthening partnerships. I wish the forum a complete success and fruitful achievements!" The participating guests expressed the belief that media exchanges are an important part of the relations between China and Central Asia. Media outlets from China and Central Asian countries should grasp the trend of the times, expand cooperation, jointly tell stories of friendly cooperation, and contribute wisdom and strength to building a closer China-Central Asia community with a shared future. The forum was jointly hosted by China's People's Daily and the Kazakh Presidential Radio and Television Administration. More than 200 media representatives, officials, experts, scholars, and business representatives from China and Central Asian countries attended the event. During the forum, the launching ceremony of the "2025 China-Central Asia Media Cooperation Forum Photo Exhibition" and the "China-Central Asia Media Joint Interview on High-Quality Belt and Road Initiative Cooperation" were also held.
