China's NEV industry has been hit by the current epidemic, but the year-on-year improvement has exceeded expectations, the CPCA said.

After plunging in April due to Covid lockdown in several cities, China's new energy vehicle (NEV) market recovered significantly in May.

China's wholesale sales of new energy passenger vehicles reached 421,000 units in May, up 111.5 percent year-on-year and up 49.8 percent from April, according to data released today by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

This is already higher than the 412,000 units sold in January this year, although lower than the 455,000 units sold in March.

China's NEV industry has been hit by the current epidemic, but the year-on-year improvement has exceeded expectations, the CPCA said.

From January to May, wholesale sales of new energy passenger vehicles in China were 1.89 million units, up 117.4 percent year-on-year.

At retail, China's new energy passenger vehicle sales reached 360,000 units in May, up 91.2 percent year-on-year and up 26.9 percent from April.

Retail sales of new energy passenger vehicles in China from January to May were 1.71 million units, up 119.5 percent year-on-year, according to the CPCA.

The improved supply in the NEV market has brought about a hot market, especially with ample orders ahead of price hikes by several car companies, the CPCA said.

The year-on-year sales performance of both NEVs and traditional internal combustion engine vehicles in May was impacted in production, with the supply shortage of NEVs intensifying, leading to significant delays in undelivered orders, the CPCA said.

Demand for private vehicle travel in the wake of the Covid epidemic is driving strong growth in the NEV market, according to the CPCA.

Looking at the overall performance of China's auto market in May, wholesale passenger vehicle sales were 1.59 million units in May, down 1.3 percent year-on-year and up 67.8 percent from April.

Retail sales of passenger vehicles in China were 1.35 million units in May, down 16.9 percent year-on-year and up 29.7 percent from April.

The Covid epidemic eased in China in May, with significant improvements in customer visits and transactions at dealer 4S stores across the region, the CPCA said.

Now that the high point of the Covid epidemic in China has passed, passenger vehicle production capacity is strong in June, with production and sales expected to grow by more than 10 percent from a year ago, the CPCA said.

China's NEV penetration -- the share of these vehicles in total sales -- continued at a high level in May.

Wholesale penetration of NEVs was 26.5 percent in May, up 14 percentage points from 12.4 percent in May 2021.

In May, wholesale penetration of NEVs was 45 percent for local Chinese brands and 19 percent for luxury vehicles, compared with just 4.1 percent for mainstream joint venture brands, the CPCA said.

Retail penetration of NEVs was 26.6 percent in May, up 15 percentage points from 11.6 percent in May 2021.

The retail penetration of NEVs among local brands was 51.8 percent, while luxury vehicles were 9.2 percent and mainstream joint venture brands were only 4 percent.