Al Root

The Chinese car market remains sluggish, even as electric-vehicle makers NIO and Li Auto posted sales growth this past month.

That wasn't the case for Chinese EV leader BYD. In March, it sold about 296,000 passenger vehicles, down 20% year over year, including 148,000 all-electric cars, down 11%.

Shares were down 1% in overseas trading, while S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were both up about 0.5%.

Smaller EV makers fared better. NIO sold 35,486 vehicles in March, up 136% year over year. Its shares were up 2.5% in premarket trading. Li Auto sold 41,053 vehicles in March, up 12% year over year. Its shares jumped 4.3% in premarket trading.

XPeng didn't manage to grow year over year. It delivered 27,415 cars in March, down 17% year over year. XPeng stock still rose 2.2% in premarket trading. (Sales increased 80% compared with February.)

Overall, the four companies delivered about 400,000 electrified cars in March, including plug-in hybrids, down 12% year over year.

Electrified car sales, which already account for more than half of new car sales, are slowing in China. Through March, BYD's passenger vehicle sales were down 30% year over year.

A slowing Chinese market matters somewhat for Tesla. China is the largest market for new cars and EVs worldwide. In 2025, Tesla generated $21 billion in Chinese revenue, about 22% of its total revenue.

Tesla stock was unaffected by the drop in early Wednesday trading. Shares were up 2%. Through Tuesday trading, Tesla stock was down about 17% year to date.

Tesla is slated to report first-quarter delivery results on Thursday morning.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com

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April 01, 2026 08:20 ET (12:20 GMT)

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