BYD/Tesla: China’s carmakers gain ground as profitability is stretched - FT中文网
登录×
电子邮件/用户名
密码
记住我
请输入邮箱和密码进行绑定操作:
请输入手机号码,通过短信验证(目前仅支持中国大陆地区的手机号):
请您阅读我们的用户注册协议隐私权保护政策,点击下方按钮即视为您接受。
电动汽车

BYD/Tesla: China’s carmakers gain ground as profitability is stretched

Low pricing strategy is not sustainable as raw material prices soar and with electric vehicle subsidies set to be phased out

It is a historic day for China’s answer to Tesla. BYD, the Chinese automaker backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, has overtaken Tesla to become the world’s top electric carmaker by sales. China’s carmakers have razor thin margins, but sales are accelerating fast.

BYD sold 641,000 vehicles in the first six months of the year, up more than 300 per cent from the previous year. That compares to 564,000 vehicles sold by Tesla, hit by supply chain and operational disruptions due to China’s lockdowns.

China, once largely seen as a domestically focused electric car market, exported more than half a million electric vehicles last year, more than double the previous year. Government policy has played a part: Beijing requires a fixed quota of electric vehicles to be made each year.

Much of the sales growth is based on low prices. For example, the Hongguang Mini, the best selling electric model in the world last year, was priced at Rmb28,800 ($4,300), before price hikes this year. BYD has a wider range of offerings, including a $34,000 extended-range model. Its pricing is much lower than global counterparts, with a starting price of $15,000 after subsidies for its Dolphin model.

These cheap electric cars make slim profits. SAIC-GM-Wuling, the maker of the Hongguang Mini, posted very thin profit margins last year. BYD operating margins fell below 2 per cent last year. For Tesla during the same period these were 12 per cent.

Ultra low pricing strategies are not sustainable. Global prices of raw materials have soared. Electric cars subsidies are set to be phased out by the end of the year. BYD has lifted the prices of its cars and batteries this year, in line with global peers.

Nonetheless, China increasingly dominates the lithium battery supply chain. That will support the sales growth of its electric carmakers. Shares of BYD have gained a third in the past year, unaffected by the broader sell-off in Chinese equities. They trade at 99 times forward earnings, an 80 per cent premium to Tesla.

The test for BYD will be whether it can attract similar demand overseas. The potential is greatest in south-east Asia and Japan where there is growing demand for small and low cost electric cars. Rapid growth in these price sensitive markets would justify the valuation gap.

版权声明:本文版权归FT中文网所有,未经允许任何单位或个人不得转载,复制或以任何其他方式使用本文全部或部分,侵权必究。

可持续投资能否经受住特朗普第二届任期的考验?

针对环境、社会和公司治理的政治反弹愈演愈烈,但该领域正在不断演变,ESG将以改头换面的形式继续存在。

TikTok在美被禁后其竞争对手的收入和用户有望增加

广告业老板表示,如果这款视频应用在周日“关闭”,Meta和YouTube将是“明显的受益者”。

特朗普新任期给美国传统防务企业蒙上阴影

支出的不确定性和对新入行者的担忧打压了大型防务承包商的股价。

Lex专栏:硅谷已向特朗普低头,华尔街则不需要

特朗普入主白宫,对科技公司而言似乎意味着更多卑躬屈膝,但对华尔街而言意味着揽入大量额外利润。

特朗普帮助达成的加沙停火协议能实现永久停火吗?

美国和以色列政府面临着艰难的政治考量,以及重建这片巴勒斯坦飞地的艰巨任务。

加拿大加强对美游说 提出防务采购和建立关键矿产联盟

加拿大能源部长称,加美贸易紧张转移了人们对中国不断上升的经济和军事实力的注意力。
设置字号×
最小
较小
默认
较大
最大
分享×