China’s automotive market reported a month-on-month sales growth of 7% to 1.742 million units in May 2023, China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) reports.
Of that total, electric vehicles contributed 388,000 unit sales. Meanwhile, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles accounted for 192,000 units. Overall, these new energy vehicles accounted for 33% of China’s total sales in the fifth month of the year.
These results also indicate a more than 28% sales growth year-on-year in China’s total car sales in May. However, it must be noted that the auto market in China was sluggish last year due to the COVID-19-related lockdown and other restraints.
Bestselling car brands – May 2023
Chinese EV and power battery giant BYD dominated the Chinese auto market in May with 209,730 sales and a 12.04% market share.
German automaker Volkswagen followed it with 173,803 sales and a 9.98% market share. Meanwhile, Japanese legacy automaker Toyota ranked third with 147,514 sales and 8.47% market share.
The top five were completed by Honda and Changan, with sales of 101,139 and 80,453, respectively.
It is interesting to note that the leading American automaker Tesla is nowhere to be seen in this ranking.
Below are the top 10 car brands in May 2023:
| Rankings | Brand | Sales | Market Share |
| 1 | BYD | 209,730 | 12.04% |
| 2 | Volkswagen | 173,803 | 9.98% |
| 3 | Toyota | 147,514 | 8.47% |
| 4 | Honda | 101,139 | 5.81% |
| 5 | Changan | 80,453 | 4.62% |
| 6 | Wuling | 71,398 | 4.10% |
| 7 | Geely | 67,582 | 3.88% |
| 8 | Nissan | 56,511 | 3.24% |
| 9 | Audi | 52,696 | 3.03% |
| 10 | Benz | 51,306 | 2.95% |
Bestselling NEV brands – May 2023
As expected, BYD ranked first with 209,730 unit sales and 36.16% market share. Of that total, all-electric models accounted for 101,065 units and a 26.05% market share.
GAC Aion followed it with sales of 45,003 units and a market share of 7.76%.
Tesla ranked third with sales of 42,508 units and 7.33 market share, closely trailing behind the second placer.
Wuling and Li completed the top five with market shares of 6.27% and 4.88%, respectively.
Below are the top 10 NEV car brands in May 2023:
| Rankings | Brand | Sales | Market Share |
| 1 | BYD | 209,730 | 36.16% |
| 2 | Aion | 45,003 | 7.76% |
| 3 | Tesla | 42,508 | 7.33% |
| 4 | Wuling | 36,353 | 6.27% |
| 5 | Li | 28,277 | 4.88% |
| 6 | Changan | 24,346 | 4.20% |
| 7 | Volkswagen | 14,530 | 2.51% |
| 8 | Leap | 12,058 | 2.08% |
| 9 | Denza | 11,005 | 1.90% |
| 10 | Neta | 10,987 | 1.89% |
Bestselling models – May 2023
China’s bestselling model in May was the BYD Qin Plus, with 42,887 sales and a 2.46% market share. Japanese model Nissan Sylphy followed it with a 1.97% share.
The Tesla Model Y ranked third with sales of 31,054 units and a 1.97% market share. Additional two BYD models dominated the fourth and fifth highest spot: Dolhin (1.67%) and Yuan Plus (1.50%).
Below are the top 10 models in May 2023:
| Rankings | Model | Sales | Market Share |
| 1 | BYD Qin Plus | 42,887 | 2.46% |
| 2 | Nissan Sylphy | 34,264 | 1.97% |
| 3 | Tesla Model Y | 31,054 | 1.78% |
| 4 | BYD Dolphin | 29,081 | 1.67% |
| 5 | BYD Yuan Plus | 26,072 | 1.50% |
| 6 | Volkswagen Lavida | 25,326 | 1.45% |
| 7 | Aion S | 25,233 | 1.45% |
| 8 | BYD Song Plus | 22,079 | 1.27% |
| 9 | Changan CS75 Plus | 21,701 | 1.25% |
| 10 | Volkswagen Sagitar | Volkswagen Sagitar | 1.21% |
See Also:
- Tesla China sales grew 2.44% month-on-month in May 2023
- China: BYD posts record-breaking EV sales in May
- Tesla reported remarkable EV sales growth in March in China
- CPCA: China’s NEV retail sales in March will grow 27.5% to 560,000 from February
- CPCA: China’s retail sales of passenger NEVs increased 32% from January
It is unsurprising that BYD has been leading China’s automotive industry, given that the country is its home market. It is also impressive that Tesla, which solely sells all-electric vehicles, manages to maintain competition in the Chinese market. In contrast, its competitors have a greater selection because they market ICE, PHEV, and EV versions.
