China’s BYD Says 2022 Income Rose as High as $2.5 Billion

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(Bloomberg) — Chinese electric-vehicle giant BYD Co. said net income reached as high as 17 billion yuan ($2.5 billion) last year, an increase of as much as 458% from 2021, according to a preliminary filing to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange on Monday.

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That’s much higher than predicted by analysts, who on average forecast net income of 13.2 billion yuan. They expect revenue for the Warren Buffett-backed company to almost double to 400 billion yuan. BYD said revenue likely exceeded 420 billion yuan.

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The company attributed the strong financial performance to the surge in new energy vehicle sales.  

Read more: Elon Musk Expects Tesla’s Main Rival Will Be a Chinese EV Maker

BYD sold 1.86 million new EV’s in 2022, more than the previous four years combined. The company avoided some of the supply-chain and Covid disruptions that hurt its rivals, thanks to its ability to produce key components including batteries and semiconductors.

Sales are expected to surge again this year, with a foray into making and selling luxury cars further fueling earnings growth. Its main rival in terms of sales volume — Tesla Inc. — said it could produce as many as 2 million cars this year.

Elon Musk’s Tesla is leading a price war, slashing prices in many markets where it operates by double-digits, including in China, the world’s biggest market for EV sales. That’s prompted some brands to follow with their own cuts to maintain sales momentum.

BYD’s Hong Kong-listed shares dipped 2.7% on Monday, trimming this year’s gains to around 24%.

(Adds more details from BYD’s filing, context throughout.)