China’s electric vehicle makers are rushing to boost sales and pave new avenues for growth before the end of the year, as they run head-on into stock market skepticism.
The CSI New Energy Vehicles Index, which tracks EV makers and suppliers listed on China’s domestic stock market, was down about 4% at one point on November 18. The drop followed a slew of quarterly earnings results and forecasts from key automakers that underscored worries about an industry slowdown amid a fierce price war.
The Hong Kong-listed shares of Guangzhou-based Xpeng, which reported its earnings on November 17, saw a drop of more than 10% the next day.
Xpeng said it delivered 116,007 vehicles in the third quarter, up from 103,181 during the preceding three months. The company’s net loss narrowed to RMB 380 million (USD 53.2 million) from RMB 480 million (USD 67.2 million) the previous quarter, on revenue from vehicle sales of RMB 18 billion (USD 2.5 billion).
But its forecasts for fourth-quarter sales of 125,000–132,000 vehicles, generating revenue between RMB 21.5–23 billion (USD 3.0–3.2 billion), left investors disappointed. Analysts had expected RMB 26 billion (USD 3.6 billion), according to LSEG data reported by Reuters.
Xpeng’s chairman and CEO He Xiaopeng said during an investor call that the company will roll out three robotaxi models in 2026 and kick off domestic trial operations, seeking another source of revenue.
Growth worries nag the industry as a milestone year for Chinese EVs nears an end. Year-to-date production of what China calls new energy vehicles (NEVs), basically comprising pure electric and hybrid cars, jumped 33.1% to around 13 million units as of the end of October, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. In October, NEV sales accounted for over half of total vehicle sales for the first time, at 51.6%.
But despite the sales surge, investors remain concerned over an aggressive price war that has defied government calls to avoid “disorderly” competition. Car sales measured by value fell 6.6% year-on-year in October, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
BYD, the country’s largest automaker, has watched its Hong Kong share price sink about 15% over the past month.
Like its smaller peers, BYD is feeling the pinch of intense competition on its earnings: Its third-quarter profit dropped 32.6% on the year, marking a second straight quarterly decline. To make up for the sales slowdown at home, BYD and its rivals are increasingly pushing overseas, although the price war tends to follow them.
BYD is planning to double its sales network in Europe by the end of next year, the company’s regional managing director for Europe said during an event in Frankfurt.
Chinese EV player Leapmotor, which is backed by European carmaker Stellantis, aims to sell 100,000–150,000 vehicles overseas next year, a company executive said during an earnings call. Leapmotor said it already ranks among the top three Chinese EV brands in sales in Germany, Italy, and France, and its total exports for the first nine months of the year reached 37,772 vehicles.
The company has far more ambitious targets in the long run. Back in September, Leapmotor CEO Zhu Jiangming said in Munich that global sales should hit one million units in 2026 and four million units within a decade, with 60% coming from outside China, according to a Reuters report.
During morning trading on November 18, however, the Hong Kong-listed shares of Leapmotor fell as much as 6.7% before recovering slightly. The stock dropped even though the Hangzhou-based company reported its second straight quarter in the black, with revenue jumping 97.3% on the year to RMB 19.5 billion (USD 2.7 billion). The company said it achieved its full-year sales target of 500,000 vehicles for 2025 on November 15, and is on track to exceed 600,000 by the end of December.
After the markets closed on November 18, Xiaomi reported that the segment including its car business turned a profit for the first time, at RMB 700 million (USD 84 million) in the third quarter. The segment accounted for a quarter of total company revenue, which grew 22% to RMB 113.1 billion (USD 15.8 billion).
Xiaomi delivered a record 108,796 vehicles in the quarter, thanks to the popularity of its SU7 sedan and YU7 SUV.
Overall net profit reached RMB 12.3 billion (USD 1.7 billion), more than doubling from a year earlier, mainly thanks to valuation gains from listed and unlisted stock investments. Yet shares of Xiaomi have tumbled more than 30% since their recent peak in September.
The company’s rapid rise in EVs since its SU7 launch has been clouded by high-profile accidents that raised safety concerns. Lei Jun, the company’s founding chairman and CEO, has pushed back against criticism over his approach to cars. In a post on social media platform Weibo, he said his principle of “safety is fundamental” does not contradict comments in an April interview, when he said that for cars, “looking good comes first.”
In a conference call, Xiaomi executives said the company will hit its annual EV sales target of 350,000 vehicles set earlier this year. They said volume remains a key target as the operation is still small compared to China’s annual car sales of about 22 million units.
China’s second largest EV maker Geely reported that its third-quarter sales reached 761,000 units, up 43% year-on-year. Geely previously upgraded its annual sales target to three million vehicles for 2025, from an initial 2.7 million.
Third-quarter revenue rose 26% to RMB 89.2 billion, while profit jumped by 59% to RMB 3.8 billion (USD 532 million).
Zeekr, Geely’s luxury EV brand, delivered around 140,000 units in the third quarter, up 13% from a year earlier. The unit’s revenue for the period increased by 9.4% to RMB 31.6 billion (USD 4.4 billion), although it remained in the red with a loss of RMB 523 million (USD 73.2 million) for the nine months ended September.
The company also finished combining two of its premium car brands, Lynk & Co and Zeekr, earlier this year, Geely said in its results filing. After merging the businesses, Lynk & Co is 51% owned by Zeekr and the rest by another Geely subsidiary.
The industry’s outlook for the final stretch of this year and 2026 is hazy.
Starting January 1, a 5% sales tax with a RMB 15,000 (USD 2,100) cap will be imposed on EVs. That has raised concerns among customers because some models have long wait times with deliveries stretching into next year, making them subject to the tax even if orders are made before the end of 2025.
Li Auto, Xiaomi, Zeekr, and other EV makers recently pledged to subsidize the tax if customers lock in their orders in November, in an effort to prevent them from switching to models that can be delivered quickly. Some have pledged to give out points or prizes if deliveries are later than initially promised.
Some regional governments have launched campaigns to boost car sales before the end of the year, supporting an industry that is critical to local economic growth. Jiangsu has raised the upper limit on trade-in subsidies from RMB 8,000 (USD 1,120) to RMB 10,000 (USD 1,400).
“While we stay optimistic about the long-term growth potential, a tough comparison base for 2026, uncertain subsidy policies, and prolonged price competition may limit share price upside,” Vincent Sun, senior equity analyst at Morningstar, wrote in a note on November 18.
This article first appeared on Nikkei Asia. It has been republished here as part of 36Kr’s ongoing partnership with Nikkei.