2.52 million vehicles were sold in November 2021, a decrease of 9.1 percent when compared with November 2020. The industry has experienced a decline in year-over-year sales in each month for seven consecutive months, largely resulting from supply chain issues linked to chip supply constraints.

 

It is also likely that stimulus measures implemented in the post-COVID recovery period pulled demand into the latter part of 2020, making the year-over-year comparisons look relatively weak. This is especially true for commercial vehicle sales, which have been in double-digit negative decline since June.

 

New Energy Vehicles sales continue to buck the otherwise negative overall market trend, recording a record month of 450,000 units sold. This clearly represents a secular shift in market preference, recording a monthly share of 20.8%.

 

When looking at the individual performances, it remains clear that the NEV market in China is dominated by local brands, with only Tesla appearing in the top 10 list for November.

Local Chinese Smart EV brands XPENG (15,613 units), Lixiang (13,485) and NIO (10,878) all set new monthly salles records, while Tesla put up a solid month of sales (31, 732 units including 23,117 Model Y).

 

It is clear that the secular shift towards electric vehicles is primarily benefitting the Chinese local brands. Local OEMs sell 4 out of every 5 electric cars sold in China, helping Chinese brands gain 5% of the total share of the Chinese automotive market.