After October, BYD once again broke through the monthly sales mark of 500,000 vehicles in November, and sold 504,003 new vehicles in a single month. By the end of November, BYD had sold 3,740,930 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 67%. So far, BYD has achieved the sales target of 20% growth in 2024 one month ahead of schedule. In addition, according to the current growth trend, BYD is more likely to become the first new energy automobile manufacturer in the world with annual sales of more than 4 million vehicles.
In the face of increasingly fierce market competition and technological changes, BYD insists on technological innovation and product diversification, and has launched many new models that are deeply loved by consumers, such as Qin L, Yuan UP, Wangwang U7, Tengshi N7 and Equation Leopard 8, and has kept its price competitiveness by continuously optimizing its cost structure. At the same time, BYD has also made remarkable progress in overseas markets. In the first 11 months, it exported more than 360,000 passenger cars, accelerating the pace of internationalization. Being able to stand out in the complex and changeable market environment and achieve a double harvest of sales and profits is closely related to BYD’s series of strategic plans since it entered 2024.
R&D investment continues to grow.
Behind the steady growth of BYD’s sales, it is inseparable from the long-term huge investment and continuous innovation in technology research and development. From January to September this year, BYD’s R&D investment reached 33.32 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 33.6%, and the accumulated R&D investment exceeded 160 billion yuan. Up to now, BYD has nearly 110,000 technical R&D personnel, making it the car company with the largest number of R&D personnel in the world.
High R&D investment has also brought continuous breakthroughs in technological innovation for BYD, especially in battery technology and intelligent driver assistance system, and BYD’s progress is obvious to all.
Taking the blade battery as an example, this technological innovation greatly improves the energy density and safety of the battery pack through structural optimization, and also effectively reduces the production cost. The introduction of blade batteries enables BYD to install more batteries in a limited space, thus significantly improving the cruising range of vehicles and solving the problem of users’ anxiety about the battery life of electric vehicles. At the same time, the safety of the blade battery has been greatly enhanced, reducing the risk of thermal runaway. In addition, the cost-effectiveness of blade batteries becomes more obvious with the promotion of large-scale production and technological progress, which helps BYD maintain its price competitiveness and attract more price-sensitive consumers.
More crucially, the design concept and technological innovation of blade battery make it realize the loading of large-capacity battery without occupying the space of passenger compartment. This advantage is very important to improve the overall performance and user experience of the vehicle. Take the Han EV with a maximum battery capacity of 85.4kWh as an example. Although this model has a large battery pack, BYD skillfully places it at the bottom of the car body, ensuring that the battery pack will not occupy the space of the front and rear passengers on the basis of ensuring a certain ground clearance. This has therefore become one of the important reasons for the popularity of Han EV and other models.
At the same time, the intelligent driving assistance function has also become a key to BYD’s research and development. BYD launched the "Eye of the Gods" advanced intelligent driving assistance system, in which the application of NOA pilot-assisted driving technology in cities has made rapid progress. Urban NOA can help drivers achieve more accurate operations in complex urban environments, such as automatic braking and obstacle avoidance, which can ensure driving safety and reduce the burden on drivers. This intelligent experience not only enhances the sense of science and technology of products, but also provides more powerful reasons for young consumers who pursue convenience and high-tech configuration to choose BYD products.
Furthermore, BYD’s "CNOA" has also made new progress. At the end of October, this function has been opened in six new cities, namely Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, Suzhou, Xi ‘an and Chengdu. Together with Shenzhen, which has been opened, there are currently 7 cities, and according to the current plan, the national cities can be opened by the end of December. For BYD, intelligent technology is bound to become an important boost to promote the development of the automobile industry.
Product line careful layout
The rapid rise of BYD in the new energy vehicle market is largely due to the orderly market competition strategy. Through a series of carefully planned product line expansion and optimization, a product matrix covering all models from entry-level to high-end is gradually constructed, so BYD can quickly occupy more shares in the domestic market, and at the same time launch a differentiated competitive offensive against other car companies.
At the beginning of 2024, BYD launched the glory version of Qin PLUS DM-i, which started at 79,800 yuan, directly lowering the threshold of A-class new energy vehicles and giving consumers more choices. Since then, BYD has launched more than ten glory models in a short time, such as destroyer 05, dolphin and Han family, covering different market segments, from compact cars to SUVs, and each model has been optimized and upgraded for specific consumer groups.
With the continuous introduction of glory models, BYD has been able to consolidate its position in the low-end market, especially in the key price range of 50,000-150,000 yuan, which accounts for half of the whole market.
For BYD, occupying the low-end market is the first step, and then it will gradually fill the gap in the middle and high-end market through in-depth optimization of the cost structure of the original models and introduction of higher-end product lines such as Tengshi Z9GT. The easy-to-square technology of Tengshi Z9GT makes the vehicle have the functions of extreme steering and intelligent crab walking, which are incomparable to traditional fuel vehicles, and it also provides BYD with a powerful competitive weapon in the market of more than 200,000.
Obviously, BYD’s product line layout is not just a simple price reduction promotion, but by virtue of the advantages of vertical integration, it effectively reduces production costs and converts the saved costs into more competitive prices. In sharp contrast, Tesla’s market share in China is gradually being eroded. Although it has taken several price reduction measures, the space for brand premium has become smaller and smaller. In contrast, BYD achieved sales growth while ensuring a certain profit rate through the cost-oriented pricing method, which proved the effectiveness of this business model.
It should be pointed out that whether it is product line planning or new product launch, BYD always focuses on how to better meet the needs of consumers, and at the same time actively seeks technological innovation to maintain long-term competitive advantage. This ability of dynamic adjustment is the key for BYD to stand out in the rapidly changing market environment.
The globalization process is accelerating.
Since the official announcement of the "Passenger Cars Going to Sea" program in 2021, BYD has expanded its business map to 78 countries and regions on 6 continents. Through a series of strategic measures such as localization and integration, BYD is gradually establishing a strong brand awareness and market share around the world.
Specifically, BYD has built a new energy vehicle production base in Segde, Hungary, which is BYD’s first new energy passenger car factory in Europe. Hungary is located in the center of Europe, with a mature automobile industry supporting system and relatively low labor costs, which also brings more help for BYD to enter the European market.
In addition to Hungary, BYD also plans to invest $1 billion in Turkey to build a factory with an annual output of 150,000 vehicles, which is expected to be put into operation in 2026. In Brazil, BYD spent R $3 billion to set up a large-scale production base complex consisting of three factories, covering the production of electric buses and truck chassis, the manufacturing of new energy passenger cars and the processing of lithium iron phosphate batteries. These overseas factories not only help BYD to better serve the local market, but also provide the company with a wider supply chain network and support system.
For a long time, BYD’s overseas expansion has not only focused on simple export sales, but also included the process of deep localization. Taking Thailand as an example, BYD not only launched product lines suitable for local market demand, such as Dolphin, Seal and Atto3, but also actively participated in local industrial chain construction, including establishing the first overseas passenger car factory in cooperation with WHA MUGUR PETRU CIUBANCAN Group, with an estimated annual production capacity of about 150,000 vehicles.
Similarly, in the Israeli market, Atto 3 (Yuan PLUS) has become the best-selling single model, which proves BYD’s deep understanding of consumer preferences in different regions and its adaptability. This localized operation mode also brings BYD a faster response speed to market changes, and at the same time effectively reduces the risks caused by international trade frictions.
Conclusion:
Byd, with its profound technical accumulation, flexible market strategy and deep understanding of consumers’ preferences in various places, is steadily moving towards a broader development space. In this process, BYD has to face the uncertainty in the process of global economic recovery and the challenges brought by changes in trade policies. However, it is these uncertainties and challenges that will prompt BYD to innovate constantly and seek new development opportunities. We can foresee that it will continue to play an important role in the world in the future and have a lasting impact on the entire automobile industry.
