Chinese automaker BYD reported a surge in sales late last year, leaving it closer to claiming the title of the world's best-selling electric vehicle (EV) maker in 2024.
The company said it sold 207,734 electric cars in December, bringing the annual total to 1.76 million, as subsidies and rebates helped attract customers.
It comes as Tesla is due to announce its own quarterly sales figures later on Thursday.
The American electric carmaker maintained a small lead in EV sales over BYD in the previous quarter, but the Shenzhen-based firm is closing the gap.
BYD's total car sales jump more than 41% in 2024. on an annual basis. The growth was mainly due to sales of hybrid cars.
The company has benefited from a surge in domestic car sales as intense competition has driven down prices and government subsidies have encouraged consumers to replace their old cars with electric vehicles or other more economical options.
BYD sells 90% of its cars in China, where it is expanding its lead over foreign brands such as Volkswagen and Toyota.
The rise of BYD and other Chinese electric car makers contrasts with the challenges faced by some older carmakers struggling in major Western markets.
last month, Honda and Nissan have confirmed they are in merger talksas the two Japanese firms seek to fend off competition from the Chinese auto industry.
Also in December, Volkswagen has announced that it has reached a deal with the IG Metall trade union which will prevent factory closures in Germany and immediate forced redundancies.
The German car giant warned earlier that it may have to close plants in the country for the first time in a bid to cut costs.
Earlier in the month, The boss of car giant Stellantis, Carlos Tavares, has left with immediate effect after a confrontation in the boardroom.
His sudden departure from the company – which owns brands including Vauxhall, Jeep, Fiat, Peugeot and Chrysler – came two months after Stellantis issued a profit warning.
In the third quarter of 2024 BYD saw its revenue jump, beating Tesla's for the first time.
It reported more than 200 billion yuan ($28.2 billion, 21.8 billion pounds) in revenue between July and September – a 24 percent jump from the same period last year and more than Elon Musk's company, whose quarterly revenue was 25. 2 billion dollars.
However, Tesla still sells more electric vehicles (EVs) than BYD.
Chinese automakers are trying to boost sales of their electric cars outside the country, but are facing pushback in some major markets.
in October European Union tariffs up to 45.3% on imports of Chinese-made EVs took effect across the bloc.
The US has also imposed 100% tariffs on electric cars from China, and President-elect Donald Trump is expected to additional tariffs.
Meanwhile, BYD is expanding its foothold in emerging economies.
It faced a setback last month in Brazil – its biggest overseas market – with authorities halt construction of a BYD factorysaying that the workers live in conditions comparable to “slavery”.
BYD said it has cut ties with the construction firm involved and remains committed to “full compliance with Brazilian law.”