BYD Dethroned at Home But Exports Surge 70% as New Tang SUV and Chip Ambitions Take Center Stage
Published on 07/17/2026 at 20:23 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
BYD has lost its position as China’s largest automaker by first-half sales, a title it ceded to state-owned SAIC Motor as domestic demand for its Dynasty and Ocean lineups stumbled. The Shenzhen-based company sold 1.809 million vehicles in the first six months of 2026, trailing SAIC’s 2.045 million units. Even Geely overtook BYD in retail sales of Chinese-brand cars, moving 1.021 million vehicles. Overall group sales slumped 15.72 percent year-on-year, with the mature Dynasty and Ocean series accounting for roughly 22.5 percent fewer deliveries. The drag stems partly from a capacity bottleneck at the second-generation Blade battery plant, which has constrained production of newer models.
Yet the domestic setback masks a sharply contrasting picture overseas. BYD shipped 789,400 vehicles outside China in the first half, a 70 percent surge from the year-earlier period, pushing the export share of total sales to 43.6 percent. The company has raised its 2026 export target to 1.5 million units, with Brazil leading the way at 186,921 deliveries between January and May. Australia, Britain, Belgium and Germany follow, the latter taking 16,342 vehicles. Monthly exports have now exceeded 100,000 units for six consecutive months, and from January to April 2026 alone the tally reached 456,263 — up 60 percent year-on-year.
To sustain that momentum, BYD is pursuing its own factories in Europe rather than relying purely on distribution partnerships, and is in talks with several manufacturers, including Stellantis, about acquiring a production site. The Denza Z9 GT, sold in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Britain, is the spearhead of a brand push that aims to cover 30 countries by the end of 2026. Chairman Wang Chuanfu told shareholders on June 9 that the first quarter of 2025 marked a trough for the new-car market and that Blade battery production has been ramping since March, adding 20,000 to 30,000 vehicles of monthly capacity. He set a global sales target of 1.5 to 1.6 million exports for this year and reiterated an ambition to become the world’s largest automaker by 2030, claiming BYD can overtake Toyota within five years even without meaningful sales in the United States.
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That growth narrative is buttressed by a product offensive that includes the new generation Tang SUV, shown in production form on July 17. The five- or seven-seat electric flagship measures 5,045 mm in length, 1,980 mm in width and 1,760 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,950 mm. A 300-kW permanent magnet synchronous motor drives the rear wheels to a top speed of 250 km/h, while the second-generation Blade LFP battery and DiSus-A air suspension combine for a claimed CLTC range of over 800 km. Pricing is expected between 280,000 and 320,000 yuan, with a market launch scheduled for the second half of 2026. Alongside it, the new Da Han sedan — equipped with a 102.3-kWh battery pack and a CLTC range of up to 1,008 km — targets the premium segment at roughly 300,000 yuan. Denza, a BYD subsidiary, also previewed the Z9S sedan with powertrain options of 320 kW and 370 kW, aimed directly at Xiaomi’s SU7.
On the technology front, BYD revealed that more than 3.33 million of its vehicles are now equipped with the DiPilot driver-assistance system, which generates over 210 million kilometers of real-world driving data daily. The development team has swelled to more than 5,000 engineers. In May, the company unveiled the Xuanji A3 chip, a 4-nanometer device that BYD calls China’s first domestically produced automotive-grade chip with a combined computing power of more than 2,100 TOPS, supporting Level 3 and Level 4 autonomous functions.
Morgan Stanley remains bullish despite the domestic headwinds. The bank reiterated its “Overweight” rating and H-share price target of 121 Hong Kong dollars, forecasting second-quarter net profit of 9 billion yuan on sales of 1.10 million vehicles — a 58 percent sequential jump. Revenue is pegged at 217 billion yuan, 45 percent higher than the first quarter, with gross margin of 19 percent and profit per vehicle of 7,600 yuan. For the full year, the analysts expect 4.6 million deliveries, split between 2.8 million at home and 1.8 million abroad, with second-half volumes rising 12 percent to 2.8 million units.
The stock has recovered some poise after a prolonged slide, though it remains well below its 52-week high. Shares closed at 9.97 euros in recent trading, down just 0.34 percent on the day but up 10.12 percent over the past 30 days. That still leaves the price 6.32 percent below its 200-day moving average of 10.64 euros, and roughly a third off the July 2025 peak of 14.80 euros. The combination of a reinvigorated product lineup, an export engine running at full throttle, and a clear technological roadmap suggests the market’s attention will remain fixed on whether BYD can translate its global ambition into sustainable earnings growth.
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