China’s new energy vehicle (NEV) sales reached a record 1.72 million units in October, supported by robust demand for battery electric vehicles (BEVs), data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) showed on Tuesday.
The figure marks a 20% year-on-year increase and a 6.9% rise from September’s 1.60 million units. CAAM’s data includes automakers’ wholesale deliveries, covering both domestic and export sales. NEVs include BEVs, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), and fuel cell vehicles.
BEV sales totaled 1.11 million units in October, up 31.7% from a year earlier and 4.8% higher than September, marking the second time monthly BEV sales surpassed one million. PHEV sales reached 605,000 units, rising 3% year-on-year and 10.8% month-on-month.
China’s total vehicle sales stood at 3.32 million units in October, up 8.8% year-on-year and 3% from September. The NEV penetration rate reached 51.6%, exceeding the 50% mark for the first time, compared with 49% in September and 46.8% in the same period last year.
NEV exports maintained strong growth momentum, rising 99.9% year-on-year to 256,000 units. Excluding exports, domestic NEV sales reached 1.46 million units, up 12.1% year-on-year and 5.6% from the previous month.
China exported 666,000 vehicles in total during October, up 22.9% year-on-year and 2.1% from September. BEV exports rose 59.6% to 166,000 units, while PHEV exports surged 270% to 90,000 units, according to CAAM data.