Beijing (ZXZC)- China's new energy passenger vehicle (NEPV) industry achieved a remarkable stride in December 2023, displaying an upswing in both production and sales results, signaling a robust year-end for the market.

In December, China's production volume of NEPVs reached 1.095 million units, leaping 45.4% year on year while rising 10.5% month on month. Cumulatively, the yearly output of NEPVs in country surged 33.7% from that of a year ago to 8.92 million units throughout 2023, according to data provided by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

Sales in the NEPV segment also depicted a vibrant picture, with wholesale figures touching 1.108 million units in December, up by 47.5% year-on-year and 15.3% month-on-month. Yearly wholesale figures aggregated to 8.864 million units in 2023, indicating a significant 36.3% year-on-year jump.

Photo credit: XPeng

Monthly retail sales of NEPVs in China stood at 945,000 units in December, zooming up 47.3% from a year ago while climbing 12.1% from the previous month. Cumulative retail sales of NEPVs for the year amounted to 7.736 million units, marking a 36.2% year-on-year surge.

Moreover, the penetration rate of NEPVs in December wholesale volume grew 7 percentage points from a year earlier to 40.8%. Throughout 2023, the cumulative penetration rate of NEPVs hit 34.7%, showing a 6.6-percentage-point increase from 2022.

Photo credit: NIO

In December, battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) witnessed robust wholesale sales of 751,000 units, which surged 32.9% year over year and ticked up 15.3% month over month. In 2023, the annual wholesale volume of BEVs reached 6.113 million units, reflecting a 21.9% increase compared to that of the previous year. The plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) sector, on the other hand, exhibited a sales figure of 357,000 units in December, which soared 91.8% year on year and rose 15.3% month over month, amounting to an annual wholesale figure of 2.751 million units for 2023, up 85.1% from a year ago.

In the past month, 14 out of 30 vehicle models whose wholesale sales exceeded 20,000 units were NEPV models in China. Moreover, NEPVs also took the top 6 spots on the list, which were the BYD Song (84,039 units), the Tesla Model Y (62,158 units), the Wuling Hongguang MINIEV (50,561 units), the BYD Seagull (50,525 units), the Wuling Binguo (48,979 units), and the BYD Qin (46,394 units).

Photo credit: BYD

In the domestic retail sector, NEPVs constituted 40.2% of the overall monthly passenger car retail volume in December, indicating a 10.6-percentage-point increase from the same period of the previous year and resulting in a yearly penetration rate of 35.7%. Within the segment, Chinese homegrown brands held a dominant NEPV share of 64.6%, while the figure for luxury vehicles stood at 29.5% and mainstream joint venture brands a mere 6%.

Monthly retail market share for China’s domestic brands slightly dipped to 70.3% in December, while joint venture brands registered a 2.2-percentage-point decline from a year ago, securing a 4.8% share. Major NEPV forces like Tesla saw a 1.5-percentage-point year-on-year increase to reach an 8% share in December, while other startup players grabbed a combined 14.9% market share, reflecting a 0.9-percentage-point rise year-on-year.

Photo credit: Tesla

In December 2023, exports of China-made NEPVs totaled 102,000 units, surging 39.8% year on year and constituting 26.6% of China’s total passenger car exports in the month, with 90% being BEVs. Notably, the top three exporters of NEPVs in China were still BYD (36,095 units), SAIC Motor Passenger Vehicle Company (19,427 units), and Tesla China (18,334 units).

In December, leading NEV manufacturers showcased a robust performance, with BYD consolidating its position with strong sales figures for both BEVs and PHEVs. Meanwhile, such brands as Changan, SERES, Li Auto, and Leapmotor demonstrated significant strength in the extended-range electric vehicle market. 

Photo credit: Li Auto

The market landscape continued to expand with 21 manufacturers achieving wholesale volumes exceeding 10,000 units in the past month, which collectively represented 92.8% of the Chinese NEPV market last month. 

Key contributors to this feat included BYD (340,178 units), SAIC-GM-Wuling (117,533 units), Tesla China (94,139 units), Geely (60,447 units), Li Auto (50,353 units), Changan (47,330 units), GAC AION (45,947 units), SERES (36,270 units), SAIC Motor Passenger Vehicle (35,024 units), Great Wall Motor (29,816 units), Chery Auto (20,887 units), SAIC Volkswagen (20,588 units),  XPeng (20,107 untis), SAIC-GM (18,911 units), Leapmotor (18,618 units), NIO (18,012 units), BAIC Passenger Vehicle (12,811 units), BMW Brilliance (10,519 units), IM Motors (10,412 units), VOYAH (10,017 units), and GAC Trumpchi (10,013 units).