Unstoppable! After surpassing Tesla, BYD's annual sales are expected to catch up with Ford

After becoming the "Tesla killer," does BYD still aim to surpass the century-old automaker Ford?

In the third quarter of this year, BYD's revenue grew by 24% year-on-year to 201.125 billion yuan, surpassing Tesla for the first time in history and claiming the title of king of electric vehicles. The recent car sales data released by BYD suggests that it is likely to overtake traditional automotive giant Ford.

Data shows that BYD sold over 500,000 new energy vehicles in October, far exceeding the 300,000 units sold in the same period last year and surpassing Tesla's 460,000 units. In the third quarter of this year, BYD sold 1.1349 million vehicles, which is about 40,000 units higher than Ford. Ford discloses its global sales quarterly, with an average sales volume of about 1.1 million units over the past three quarters.

Bloomberg reports that nearly all analysts focusing on BYD expect this momentum to continue, with BYD's annual sales likely to surpass Ford. A former executive at General Motors stated that BYD's sales growth is at an "unprecedented speed." Automotive consultant Michael Dunne predicts that BYD's annual sales could reach 4 million units:

Reaching 4 million units this year is an astonishing milestone. BYD will soon see Ford in its rearview mirror.

The surge in BYD's sales mainly comes from the explosive growth of hybrid models in the mass market. From the specific sales in October, it can be seen that 62% of BYD's sales that month came from hybrid models. Since the launch of its fifth-generation DM technology at the end of May this year, more than a dozen models have been refreshed with this technology.

Riding the wave of new energy vehicles, BYD has gone from annual sales of only 400,000 units to being ranked among the top 10 global automakers in just four years. As BYD continues to expand overseas, traditional automakers like Ford are feeling the competitive pressure. Companies like Nissan and Volkswagen are facing crises such as shrinking profits and overcapacity. Previously, Nissan announced it would lay off 9,000 employees and cut production capacity by one-fifth, and this traditional automaker's revenue may also fall behind BYD this year.

BYD is also one of the highest-valued automotive manufacturers. Back in June 2022, when BYD's stock listed in Hong Kong hit an all-time high, its market value exceeded the combined market values of Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis