In the new energy vehicle market, China has demonstrated formidable competitiveness.
In the first nine months of 2024, China's new energy passenger vehicles captured nearly 70% of the global new energy vehicle market share. Relevant data shows that in the third quarter of this year, the global market share of China’s new energy passenger vehicles reached 73%. This signifies that in the Chinese market, whoever dominates new energy wins the future.
The recently released quarterly reports from car companies also substantiate this point.
As one of the few manufacturers making profits from selling electric vehicles, both BYD and Tesla continue to break new records; additionally, we cannot overlook Seres, which reported its best quarterly performance after turning a profit in the first quarter of this year.
BYD
Specifically, BYD’s revenue in the third quarter grew by 24.04% year-on-year, reaching 201.125 billion yuan. This also marks the first time its quarterly revenue has exceeded Tesla’s; net profit attributable to shareholders was 11.607 billion yuan, showing a year-on-year increase of 11.47%.
BYD production base in the Xiatang Industrial Park, Hefei City.
The growth in revenue can be attributed to BYD's sustained strong sales. Financial reports reveal that BYD sold approximately 1.1343 million electric vehicles in the third quarter, showing significant year-on-year growth. Notably, in October, BYD achieved sales of 502,700 units, an increase of 66.53% year-on-year. This marked the first time BYD’s monthly sales exceeded 500,000 units, setting a new record for Chinese car manufacturers.
Moving forward, BYD will focus on expanding its overseas markets by establishing overseas factories and forming strategic partnerships with local partners to enhance its global visibility and influence, thus maintaining its competitive edge.
Tesla
Although BYD surpassed Tesla in quarterly revenue, Tesla still has the edge in profitability. Financial reports indicate that in the third quarter of 2024, Tesla achieved revenue of $25.182 billion (approximately 179.366 billion yuan), with a net profit of $2.167 billion (about 15.438 billion yuan), a year-on-year increase of 17.07%.
During the earnings release, Elon Musk stated that strong performance is linked to the growth in electric vehicle sales and record-high energy storage business. Data shows that Tesla delivered approximately 463,000 electric vehicles in the third quarter of 2024, marking a new quarterly delivery record for the year.
Tesla noted that in China, the Model Y is currently the best-selling model of 2024. In Europe, the Model Y is the top-selling vehicle in Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Switzerland this year.
It is also worth mentioning that Tesla's cost of goods sold (COGS) per vehicle has dropped to an all-time low of approximately $35,100 (around 250,000 yuan). Musk indicated that thanks to falling vehicle costs and advancements in autonomous driving, Tesla's vehicle sales could increase by 20%-30% next year under the best circumstances.
Seres
Established three years ago, Seres is still far behind BYD and Tesla in sales and revenue scale, but its gross profit margin is leading the industry.
The financial report indicates that in the third quarter of 2024, Seres reported revenue of 41.582 billion yuan, representing a year-on-year growth of 636.25%; net profit was 2.413 billion yuan, and net profit excluding non-recurring loss was 2.325 billion yuan. By the end of the third quarter, Seres achieved a net profit of 4.038 billion yuan.
Seres automobile factory in Chongqing Liangjiang New Area.
This impressive performance is closely tied to the success of the Wenjie M9 model. The sustained popularity of the Wenjie M9 not only raised the overall average selling price for Seres but also lifted its gross profit margin per vehicle from 21.5% in the first quarter to 25.53% in the third quarter. Yu Chengdong previously revealed that 80% of M9 owners opted for the high-end model priced at 550,000 yuan, directly raising the average price of the Wenjie brand to 390,000 yuan. While many car manufacturers are fiercely competing in the crowded market below 200,000 yuan, Seres' high-end strategy gives it confidence not to fear price wars.
In the future, Seres plans to expand the Wenjie series sales network through collaboration with Huawei to cope with the increasingly intense market competition. Another point to watch is how Seres will boost its presence in the purely electric vehicle segment. Currently, over 90% of the sales in the Wenjie brand come from extended-range models, while the only pure electric model, the Wenjie M5 EV, is performing modestly, and it is positioned to compete with the Model Y.
