GAC Group Rebounds with Dual Engine of Self-Brands and Overseas Markets

GAC Group reported vehicle sales of 121,000 units in April 2026, up 3.88% year-over-year. From January to April 2026, cumulative sales exceeded 500,000 units, an increase of 2.74% year-over-year. Among these, self-owned brands sold over 58,800 vehicles in April, maintaining double-digit growth. Overseas sales from January to April surpassed 70,000 units, surging 133.9% year-over-year. In the first quarter of 2026, GAC Group delivered 380,000 vehicles, with self-owned brand sales reaching 166,200 units, up 42% year-over-year. GAC Aion and GAC Trumpchi recorded Q1 sales of 74,100 and 92,100 units respectively, representing year-over-year increases of 57.34% and 33.06%. In April, GAC Aion sold more than 38,000 vehicles, up 62.48% year-over-year, with the Aion i60 consistently exceeding 10,000 units per month. By the end of April, cumulative sales of the GAC Trumpchi MPV family surpassed 860,000 units. Financially, GAC Group reported consolidated operating revenue of RMB 20.229 billion for the first three months of 2026, up 1.76% year-over-year. Net profit attributable to listed company shareholders increased by 10.29% year-over-year. GAC Group is implementing the “Panyu Initiative” to clarify positioning for its three self-owned brands—Trumpchi, Aion, and Hyper: Trumpchi focuses on family mobility; Aion emphasizes “fashionable, intelligent, and reassuring” mobility and has launched a new logo; Hyper targets premium tech-driven mobility. The group has established shared centers to integrate R&D, production, supply chain, sales, and service resources, adopting platform-based planning, large-scale centralized procurement, and implementing IPD (Integrated Product Development) and IPMS (Integrated Project Management System) processes. Post-reform, product planning efficiency has improved by 30%, project initiation review efficiency by 67%, requirement decision-making efficiency by 85%, and new vehicle development cycles have been shortened to 18–21 months. On the organizational front, GAC is piloting a Business Unit (BU) model, establishing Hyper-Aion BU, Trumpchi BU, Powertrain BU, and Intelligent Cockpit Product Line, while adjusting executive appointments, performance evaluations, and exit mechanisms. Technologically, as of the end of 2025, GAC had cumulatively invested over RMB 62 billion in R&D and filed more than 24,900 patents, including over 11,200 invention patents. R&D expenses in Q1 2026 rose 42.06% year-over-year. In April 2026, GAC unveiled key innovations: Xingyuan Powertrain, Xingjian Body, Xinghe Intelligent Cockpit, and Xingling Architecture 4.0. Xingyuan Powertrain supports hybrid electric (HEV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV), and range-extended electric vehicle (REEV) configurations. The Trumpchi Wangxiang E8 PHEV equipped with this technology achieves a fuel consumption of 3.98 L/100 km and a combined range of 1,537 km. The Xinghe Intelligent Cockpit leverages data from 3.75 million vehicles to enhance human-machine interaction. Xingling Architecture 4.0 enables 8-minute OTA updates and offers over 3,600 atomic smart-scenario functions. GAC is also advancing chip localization, having partnered with 105 companies to develop and validate nearly 400 chip models, 51 of which fill industry gaps. Its first fully in-house developed chip-equipped vehicle, the Hyper GT Summit Edition, will launch in May 2026. GAC has partnered with Huawei to create “Qijing,” a premium intelligent EV brand. Its debut model, the GT7, will launch in June 2026, featuring Huawei’s Qiankun ADS 5 autonomous driving system and receiving Guangzhou’s L3 autonomous driving test permit. In overseas markets, GAC has positioned Hong Kong as a right-hand-drive and showcase market. In April 2026, GAC topped local BEV registrations with 1,596 units, surpassing Tesla and BYD. Models currently sold in Hong Kong include the Aion UT, Aion V, Aion ES, Aion Y Plus, Hyper HT, and Trumpchi E9. As of March 31, 2026, GAC’s operations spanned 102 countries and regions, with 650 sales and service outlets, five overseas KD plants, and nine major overseas parts warehousing centers. The Aion UT has ranked among the top three in multiple international segments and has commenced localized production in Italy. GAC aims to achieve annual overseas sales of one million units by 2030, expand to 120 countries, and establish over 2,000 overseas outlets.