China's NEV Sales Top 1 Million in May; ICE Vehicles Fall Out of Top 10 for First Time

In May, domestic sales of passenger vehicles in China totaled 1.444 million units, up 8.2% month-over-month but down 23.4% year-over-year. Of these, sales of conventional fuel-powered passenger vehicles reached 497,000 units, down 3.5% month-over-month and down 41.8% year-over-year. From January to May, cumulative passenger vehicle sales amounted to 6.791 million units, a 23.8% year-over-year decline; sales of conventional fuel-powered passenger vehicles totaled 3.203 million units, down 28% year-over-year. In the new energy vehicle (NEV) segment, domestic sales in May reached 1.049 million units, up 14.8% month-over-month but down 4.1% year-over-year. Specifically, NEV passenger vehicle sales stood at 947,000 units, up 15.6% month-over-month but down 8.1% year-over-year; NEV commercial vehicle sales totaled 103,000 units, up 7.8% month-over-month and surging 58.4% year-over-year. From January to May, cumulative NEV sales reached 3.97 million units, down 16.5% year-over-year; NEV passenger vehicle sales totaled 3.588 million units, down 19.7% year-over-year; and NEV commercial vehicle sales reached 382,000 units, up 34.9% year-over-year. All ten best-selling vehicle models in China’s domestic retail market in May were either battery electric or hybrid models—no conventional internal combustion engine vehicles made the list. Meanwhile, vehicle exports continued their rapid growth, commercial vehicle sales kept rising, and the NEV market showed signs of stabilization and recovery.