China’s BYD will surpass Tesla to become the world’s largest seller of electric vehicles

China’s BYD is set to overtake Elon Musk’s Tesla to become the world’s largest seller of electric vehicles (EVs), marking the first time its annual sales have surpassed those of its U.S. rival.

Thursday, world theory Last year, its electric vehicle sales increased by nearly 28% to more than 2.25 million vehicles.

Tesla will report total sales for 2025 later on Friday, and analyst forecasts released last week showed the company selling about 1.65 million vehicles for the full year.

The U.S. company has had a rough year Mixed reaction to new productdisturbed Musk’s political activities Competition from Chinese rivals intensifies.

In October, Tesla launched Lower-priced versions of two best-selling models in the United States to increase sales. The company has faced criticism that it has been slow to release new, more affordable options to stay competitive.

Musk, Who is already the richest man in the world?His mission is to significantly increase Tesla’s sales and stock market value over the next decade to secure a record compensation package. The deal was approved by shareholders in November and he will likely receive Up to $1 trillion (£740 billion).

As part of the deal, Musk must also sell 1 million humanoid robots over the next decade. Tesla has invested heavily in its “Optimus” product and its self-driving “Robotaxis”.

Tesla sales decline The first three months of 2025 have come amid intense backlash for Musk’s role in U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.

In addition to Tesla, the billionaire’s business interests include social media platform X, rocket company SpaceX and tunnel-digging Boring Company.

Those promises, combined with the operations of Trump’s Department of Government Effectiveness (DoGE), have led some investors to believe Musk isn’t paying enough attention to Tesla.

since then Musk has promised “Significantly” reducing his role in the U.S. government.

Although BYD has expanded rapidly in recent years, its sales growth slowed to its lowest level in five years in 2025.

The Shenzhen-based company faces fierce competition in its main market of China from surging electric carmakers such as Xpeng Motors and NIO.

Still, BYD remains a global electric vehicle giant because its prices tend to be lower than those of rival automakers.

corporate Although many countries have imposed high tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, China’s electric vehicles are still expanding rapidly, especially in Latin America, Southeast Asia and parts of Europe.

In October, BYD said the UK had become its largest market outside China. The company said its UK sales soared 880% in the year to the end of September, driven by strong demand for plug-in hybrid versions of its Seal U sport utility vehicle (SUV).