BYD aims for half of its sales to come from outside China by 2030, report says

BYD now believes it has the right products to replicate its success in China in overseas markets, according to Reuters.

This growth will be driven by expansion in Europe and Latin America.

BYD (HKG: 1211, OTCMKTS: BYDDY) plans to sell half of its cars in overseas markets by 2030, a sharp increase that would put it on par with the world's biggest carmakers, Reuters said in a report today citing four people familiar with the matter.

While BYD and all other Chinese brands remain unable to enter the US market because of trade barriers, the growth would be fueled by expansion in Europe and Latin America, the people said.

Join us on or

Since late last year, BYD executives have outlined its 2030 goals to investors in small groups, emphasizing that European expansion is key to achieving that goal, the Reuters report noted.

That goal is a heavy lift even for a company with BYD's dizzying growth rate, the report said, adding that BYD sold 4.27 million vehicles last year, nearly 90 percent of which came from its home market in China.

BYD's confidence stems from its explosive growth in the Chinese market over the past five years with affordable electric and hybrid vehicles, one of the people said.

Another source with knowledge of BYD's discussions with investors said BYD now believes "they have the right products to repeat their Chinese success in overseas markets," according to the report.

If BYD is able to achieve its ambitious goal of selling half of its cars overseas, then what was a middling automaker five years ago will be among the top global automakers, alongside multinational giants Toyota and Volkswagen, the report noted.

BYD ceased production and sales of cars powered entirely by internal combustion engines in March 2022, switching to focus on producing plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) and battery electric vehicle (BEV) models.

It has seen an explosion in sales over the past few years, along with the rapid growth of China's new energy vehicle (NEV) market.

For the full year 2024, BYD's NEV sales amounted to 4,272,145 units, a year-on-year increase of 41.26 percent.

Its passenger BEVs sold 1,764,992 units in the full year of 2024, up 12.08 percent year-on-year. Its passenger PHEVs sold 2,485,378 units in the full year of 2024, up 72.83 percent year-on-year.

BYD sold 417,204 units overseas in the full year of 2024, up 71.86 percent year-on-year.

In March, local media outlet LatePost reported that BYD chairman and president Wang Chuanfu announced in a small communication that the company's 2025 vehicle sales target was 5.5 million units, including more than 800,000 units in overseas markets.

That overall target represents a roughly 29 percent increase from 4,272,145 vehicles in the full year of 2024. The overseas sales target represents a 92 percent increase from 417,204 vehicles in 2024.

The BYD Group currently operates four automotive brands including BYD, Denza, Yangwang and Fang Cheng Bao.

In the January-April period, BYD Group's NEV sales amounted to 1,380,893 units, an increase of 46.98 percent year-on-year.