appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Huizhao Huang

One out of every seven plug-in hybrid vehicles registered in Germany in May came from BYD, as the Chinese carmaker’s registrations surged 232 per cent in Europe’s largest auto market from a year earlier.
With 6,169 vehicles registered there in May, BYD held a 2.6 per cent share of Germany’s new-car registrations, according to data from the country’s Federal Motor Transport Authority.
Of those, 4,290 were plug-in hybrids, led by the Atto 2 DM-i with 2,113 registrations – the top-selling plug-in hybrid model in Germany for the month. BYD said it was the leading brand in the plug-in hybrid segment, with a market share exceeding 15 per cent.
May was BYD’s strongest month in Germany since the company entered the market in late 2022. The momentum mirrors a broader global push, with BYD’s overseas sales surpassing 160,000 units in May – an all-time monthly record and an 80 per cent year-on-year increase.
“The worst is over,” BYD chairman Wang Chuanfu declared during the company’s annual shareholder meeting on Tuesday, saying the company aimed to become the world’s largest carmaker by volume within five years, amid growing investor concern over a slumping share price and weakening domestic sales.
Overseas markets now account for more than 41 per cent of the company’s monthly sales. In the near term, Wang said, overseas growth has put BYD on track to exceed its 2026 target of selling 1.5 million vehicles outside China.
While BYD has found success in the United Kingdom, Germany presents a far more formidable challenge. As the home market for Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi, it remains one of the world’s most competitive arenas. Success in Germany is seen as the ultimate test of the company’s ability to compete with Europe’s established carmakers.


To gain ground in the crowded market, BYD has increasingly focused on plug-in hybrids, leveraging a 10 per cent EU tariff on Chinese-made vehicles that is significantly lower than the 27 per cent levy on full-battery-electric cars.
After the company’s Seal U became Europe’s bestselling plug-in hybrid model in 2025, the newer Atto 2 is now targeting the compact-SUV segment, extending BYD’s push into a category traditionally dominated by combustion-engine and battery-electric models.
The strategy has been accompanied by aggressive discounting. At one BYD showroom in Germany in May, some models were marked down by 30 per cent. The Atto 2 DM-i was offered at 28,240 euros (US$32,600), compared with a list price of 39,740 euros, and the total could drop to 23,740 euros after government subsidies.
Germany reintroduced EV subsidies in January, offering up to 6,000 euros for battery-electric vehicles and 4,500 euros for plug-in hybrids. Unlike France and the UK, the scheme does not exclude Chinese-made vehicles – a policy that some analysts partly attributed to the strong ties that German carmakers maintain with the Chinese market.
BYD is also pushing into the premier tier. Last week, its high-end Denza brand opened its first German showroom in Hamburg, with plans to establish around 40 sales outlets across the country by the end of 2026. Reuters has also reported that BYD was considering a German assembly plant to mitigate tariff exposure.
BYD’s Wang said localisation and premiumisation were central to its overseas strategy, pledging that the company would “not miss any major technological shift” during its global expansion.
However, Germany’s established carmakers are also stepping up their response. BMW and Mercedes-Benz are bringing around 80 new or updated models to market, many of them electric, while investing heavily in next-generation battery and charging technologies. BYD, meanwhile, said its latest Blade Battery could charge from 10 to 97 per cent in nine minutes.
Questions remain, however, about the sustainability of BYD’s penetration. Germany’s registration figures record the moment a vehicle is licensed, rather than when it is sold to a consumer, and can be skewed by dealer self-registrations and fleet purchases.
According to Schmidt Automotive Research, of the 30,472 BYD vehicles registered in Germany since the brand entered the market in 2022, only 18,536 remained on German roads as of early 2026, meaning that around four in 10 had either been exported to other markets or deregistered.


US Congress passes bill targeting Russia’s leading energy buyers – China and India

Huawei accused of stealing robot tech to get hands on T-Mobile’s trade secrets

Hong Kong targets gold trading, FPS-UnionPay link to boost yuan use

China affirms support for Iran, but warns against Yemen spillover

China trade

China’s BYD claims Germany’s plug-in hybrid crown, disrupting market of iconic auto giants

A hybrid vehicle is seen at a BYD showroom in Beijing earlier this year. The Chinese company’s hybrid models are selling increasingly well in Germany. Photo: AP

BYD playing catch-up with demand for fast-charging batteries as appeal of EVs rises

BYD expects its fast-charging batteries to provide a sales boost. Photo: Reuters

A visitor takes photos of a BYD vehicle at an auto show in Shenzhen on May 29. Photo: Xinhua

Chinese EVs reclaim momentum as tech upgrades, incentives squeeze gains of foreign marques

Chinese EVs recovered firmly in May, with Zeekr breaking its monthly delivery record. Photo: AP

Foreign brands saw a surge in sales in the first quarter before the gains faded in April. Photo: Reuters

China’s consumer prices see May uptick as oil shock inflates factory-gate costs

A man purchases groceries at a shop in Shanghai. Photo: EPA

China to bust Yangtze River chokepoint with US$11 billion ‘water staircase’ project

A construction site is seen on Monday in an early-phase excavation zone of a new Three Gorges waterway project in Yichang, Hubei province. Photo: Xinhua

China’s shipyards pass fresh milestone with delivery of vast specialised carrier

The Ivy Cove, a very large ammonia carrier, was built by the Chinese state-owned Jiangnan Shipyard. Photo: Handout

Business

China Business

China EVs

Climate and energy

News

China Future Tech

A three-fold jump in BYD’s German registrations highlights shift towards lower-tariff models, as company chairman says ‘the worst is over’


A three-fold jump in BYD’s German registrations highlights shift towards lower-tariff models, as company chairman says ‘the worst is over’.


China’s BYD claims Germany’s plug-in hybrid crown, disrupting market of iconic auto giants

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}A three-fold jump in BYD’s German registrations highlights shift towards lower-tariff models, as company chairman says ‘the worst is over’

A three-fold jump in BYD’s German registrations highlights shift towards lower-tariff models, as company chairman says ‘the worst is over’