Tesla rivals XPeng and Nio reported record monthly sales on Monday, with strong China EV sales from Xiaomi. Li Auto reported declining sales while EV giant BYD was flat.
Tesla does not report monthly China sales, but registration data point to another year-over-year decline. Industry data will give Tesla China local sales in early September.
XPeng and Xiaomi continue to have momentum in the fierce China EV market, while Nio boomed last month amid a newly launched model. Li Auto and BYD are struggling, though the latter is doing well overseas.
However, Nio reported mixed Q2 results early Tuesday.
XPeng Deliveries
XPeng delivered 37,709 EVs in August, up 2.7% vs. July and 168.7% above a year earlier. It was a record high, but below Deutsche Bank's forecast of 39,000.
Sales of the Mona M03 have remained strong. The M03 small sedan is the first vehicle in XPeng's affordable Mona line. A revamped flagship XPeng P7 sedan was officially launched on Aug. 27.
XPeng sells fully battery electric vehicles (BEVs), though it does plan to release an extended-range electric vehicle (EREV). EREVs are essentially a form of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs).
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Nio Deliveries, Earnings
Nio delivered a record 31,305 EVs in August, up 48.95% vs. July and 55.2% vs. a year earlier. That was slightly below Deutsche Bank's estimate of 32,000.
Deliveries for the namesake brand were 10,525, continuing to skid. The mainstream Onvo brand delivered 16,434, up 175% vs. July thanks to the new Onvo L90 large SUV, which began deliveries on Aug. 1. The newer, affordable Firefly brand had 4,346 deliveries, up 83.7% vs. July.
The China EV maker only sells BEVs.
Early Tuesday, Nio reported a smaller-than-expected Q2 loss, while revenue came in light. The EV maker forecast Q3 deliveries of 87,000-91,000. With July and August sales already in hand, that signals September deliveries of 34,678-38,678.
Xiaomi Deliveries
Xiaomi deliveries topped 30,000 for a second straight month. The Chinese handset maker turned EV player doesn't give specific delivery figures, so it's unclear if August reached a record.
Deutsche Bank had forecast a record 34,000, up 12% vs. July and 159% vs. a year earlier.
Xiaomi has become the biggest head-to-head Tesla rival in China, with strong demand for its stylish exteriors and infotainment features inside.
The SU7 sedan, released about a year ago, consistently outsells the Tesla Model 3. Production is still ramping up for newly released YU7 crossover, but deliveries are closing the gap with the Tesla Model Y.
Both the SU7 and YU7 are BEVs, but Xiaomi is working on large SUV EREV for production next year.
Li Auto Deliveries
Li Auto delivered 28,529 vehicles in August, below Deutsche Bank's forecast for 30,000. That's 7.2% below July and 40.7% vs. a year earlier. Competition is growing in China's SUV market, where Li Auto has traditionally dominated, while demand for hybrids has waned.
Li Auto sells mostly SUVs, though it does sell the MEGA minivan. The vast majority of Li's sales are EREVs, but the company is launching a line of BEV SUVs.
Li Auto reported weaker-than-expected Q2 earnings on Aug. 28, with EPS down 2% and sales off 3%. Li Auto expects Q3 deliveries of 90,000-95,000, down roughly 39% vs. a year earlier. With July sales already in hand, that implied August-September deliveries of 59,269-64,269.
BYD Sales
BYD sales sold 373,626 EVs in August, up 8.5% vs. July and up just 0.15% vs. a year earlier. That was better than Deutsche Bank's estimate of 345,000 in August.
Overseas sales were 80,813, up 0.1% vs. July but surging 156.95% vs. year earlier.
BYD sells BEVs and PHEVs. BEV sales have rebounded in 2025, with passenger BEV sales of 199,585, up 12.2% vs. July and 34.4% vs. a year earlier. PHEV demand has waned. Passenger PHEV sales of 171,916 did climb 5.4% vs. July but tumbled 22.7% vs. a year earlier.
BYD remains the world's largest EV maker by far, trouncing Tesla in overall sales and now the clear leader in BEV sales as well.
On Friday, BYD reported Q2 net income tumbled 30% vs. a year earlier, the first drop since Q1 2022 and far worse than expected. That was partially due to faster payments to suppliers, following pressure from Beijing. But domestic sales have struggled amid fierce competition despite big price cuts. Overseas sales, which tend to have higher margins, have boomed in 2025 vs. a year earlier but have leveled off recently.
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Tesla Sales
Tesla China sold 83,192 cars in August, up 22.55% vs. July but down 4% vs. a year earlier, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). That includes exports.
Investors will receive Tesla China local sales in a few days.
Deutsche Bank estimated that local sales would be 53,000, up 29% vs. July but down 17% vs. a year earlier. EV registrations from Aug. 4-31 totaled 42,800.
Tesla China sales in September will get a boost from the Model Y L, which has a slightly longer wheelbase for a third row of seats. Deliveries started Tuesday.
On Sept. 1, Tesla China cut the Model 3 LR RWD in China by RMB 10,000 ($1,402) to RMB 259,500 ($36,391), less than one month after the updated version was launched.
China EV Stocks
XPeng stock fell about 1% early Tuesday. Shares dived 11.5% last week to 21.02 reversing sharply lower after hitting a five-month high intraday Tuesday.
Xiaomi's U.S. shares, which trade over the counter, were not yet trading. XIACY rose 1.65% last week. Shares have traded below their 50-day line for several weeks after hitting a record high on June 30.
Nio stock rose more than 1% in volatile premarket trade after initially diving on Q2 results. Shares edged up 0.6% last week to 6.38, backing off 10-month highs, but after vaulting 31.8% in the prior week.
Li Auto stock tilted lower in premarket action. Shares fell 2.95% last week, though they pared losses after earnings. Still LI has fallen sharply over the past six weeks, hitting its worst levels since April.
BYD's U.S. shares, which trade over the counter, were not active yet. BYD stock plunged 8.1% last week, hitting its lowest levels since early February. Most of that came on Friday's 6.4% postearnings dive.
Tesla Stock
Tesla stock lost 2% early Tuesday, signaling a move just below the 200-day moving average. Shares fell 1.8% last week to 333.86 thanks to Friday's 3.5% loss. The EV maker had cleared a 348.98 handle buy point on Aug. 26.
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