0246 GMT - Chinese automakers' local retail volumes could shrink despite some recovery in domestic electric-vehicle demand in June, say Macquarie Capital's Eugene Hsiao and Calvin Ye in a note. Auto retail volume declined around 20% on year in 1H, likely due to local demand weakness. They cut their 2026 forecast for domestic retail sales to 20.2 million units, implying a 15% drop from 2025, compared with a previous estimate of 22.7 million units. Macquarie also notes margin pressure from persistently high input costs could weigh on Chinese automakers. Still, exports are set to remain strong, which Macquarie expects to surge 38% this year to 7.9 million units. Macquarie's sector pecking order is led by Geely ahead of BYD, NIO, XPeng and Li Auto. (megan.cheah@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 02, 2026 22:46 ET (02:46 GMT)
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