Geely Overtakes BYD in Passenger Car Sales in China in January 2026

Amid a slowdown in passenger car sales in China in January 2026, Geely managed to overtake BYD in both retail and wholesale sales.

Geely recorded retail sales of 210,000 units and wholesale sales of 270,000 units, leading the second-place finisher by nearly 80,000 units and 60,000 units respectively.

Throughout 2026, Geely plans to launch one to two new models every quarter, with an annual sales target of 3.45 million units.

Meanwhile, HIMA, Huawei’s new energy vehicle startup, entered the top 10 for the first time after its retail sales surged 65.5 percent compared to the same period last year.

Conversely, BYD’s retail sales plummeted by more than 50 percent year-on-year, from approximately 200,000 units in the same period last year to 94,000 units.

Overall, passenger car retail sales in January reached 1.544 million units, down 13.9 percent compared to the same period last year and nearly one-third lower than the previous month.

In the wholesale segment, the top 10 automakers recorded combined sales of 1.168 million units, or nearly 60 percent of the total wholesale volume. Geely ranked first with 270,000 units sold, up 1.3 percent year-on-year. BYD and Chery followed with 206,000 units and 194,000 units respectively. Together, these three manufacturers commanded more than 30 percent of market share.

Additionally, SAIC’s wholesale sales surged 53.6 percent year-on-year, largely driven by MG’s performance in overseas markets. Tesla China recorded wholesale sales of 69,000 units, up 9.3 percent compared to the previous year, with exports from Gigafactory Shanghai remaining the primary driver.