March EV Report Card: BYD surpasses 300,000 units in a single month, NIO up 136% year-on-year, Tesla under pressure in Q1

```

March delivery data for the Chinese electric vehicle market has been released intensively, with leading automakers generally recording year-on-year growth. BYD firmly remains at the top of the industry with over 300,000 units delivered in a single month, while NIO, XPeng, and Zeekr posted impressive growth rates, continuing the expansion momentum in the domestic market.

NIO delivered 35,486 vehicles in March, up 136% year-on-year, with first quarter cumulative deliveries reaching 83,465 vehicles, a 98.3% increase year-on-year, surpassing the company's previous guidance in its financial report. BYD sold 300,200 new energy passenger vehicles and pickups in March, with overseas sales reaching 119,600 units, and cumulative sales of new energy vehicles surpassing 15.8 million units.

Geely New Energy delivered 127,000 vehicles, a 6% year-on-year increase; Li Auto delivered 41,000 vehicles; Zeekr delivered 29,000 vehicles, up 90% year-on-year and 23% month-on-month; XPeng delivered 27,000 vehicles, up 80% month-on-month.

The above data reflect the continuous evolution of the competitive landscape in China’s new energy market: mainstream brands’ scale effects are further strengthened, while some second-tier brands have seen staged rebounds by leveraging new product cycles. Meanwhile, according to Reuters, Tesla’s first-quarter deliveries are expected to fall about 12% quarter-on-quarter, as uneven demand and intensifying competition pose dual challenges.

NIO nearly doubles Q1 deliveries, flagship new model ready to launch

NIO delivered 35,486 vehicles in March, a 136% year-on-year increase and a 70.6% month-on-month growth, with first quarter cumulative deliveries reaching 83,465 vehicles, up 98.3% year-on-year. By brand structure, NIO’s main brand delivered 22,490 vehicles in March, up 120.1% year-on-year; the Ledo brand delivered 6,877 vehicles, up 42.7% year-on-year; the Firefly brand delivered 6,119 vehicles, up 130.3% month-on-month. As of now, NIO's cumulative deliveries have exceeded 1.08 million units.

NIO simultaneously announced its flagship SUV ES9 will have its product technology launch on April 9. The company positions ES9 as "the most advanced SUV globally this year" and "a milestone for NIO’s technology from quantitative to qualitative change," with the market anticipating whether it can sustain the brand’s current delivery momentum.

XPeng up 80% month-on-month in March, BYD leads in scale

XPeng delivered 27,415 new vehicles in March, up 80% month-on-month, with first quarter cumulative deliveries reaching 62,682 units. The significant month-on-month rebound shows its new product delivery pace is accelerating.

BYD sold 300,200 vehicles in March, continuing to dominate the domestic new energy sales rankings. Among them, passenger vehicles and pickups achieved overseas sales of 119,600 units, overseas scale continues to expand, with cumulative new energy vehicle sales exceeding 15.8 million units.

Li Auto, Seres show steady growth; Geely matches last year’s level

Li Auto delivered 41,053 vehicles in March, up 12% year-on-year, with cumulative deliveries reaching 1.635 million units, maintaining steady growth momentum.

Seres sold 22,706 new energy vehicles in March, up 20.74% year-on-year; the Seres Auto brand sold 20,234 vehicles, up 47.74% year-on-year, showing a relatively outstanding growth trend.

Geely Automobile’s total sales in March were 233,031 units, basically flat compared to the same period last year, with growth momentum limited in the intensified competitive environment. Geely New Energy delivered 127,000 vehicles in March.

Deep Blue Auto March global sales 31,742 units, up 30% year-on-year

Deep Blue Auto released March global sales, totaling 31,742 units, up 30% year-on-year and 87.8% month-on-month.

Of these, Deep Blue S05 March global sales were 17,586 units, with monthly sales exceeding 10,000 since launch, global cumulative sales exceeding 190,000 units; Deep Blue S07’s cumulative global sales reached 300,000 units, with March sales up 157% month-on-month; Deep Blue L06 March sales were 5,135 units, up 170% month-on-month.

Zeekr delivered 29,318 new vehicles in March, up 90% year-on-year and 23% month-on-month

Zeekr’s March delivery data is out: 29,318 new vehicles delivered, up 90% year-on-year and 23% month-on-month, with 77,037 vehicles delivered from January to March, an 86% year-on-year increase. As of now, Zeekr’s cumulative global deliveries have approached 720,000 units.

Voyah delivered 15,019 vehicles in March, up 50% year-on-year

Voyah delivered 15,019 vehicles in March, up 50% year-on-year and 80% month-on-month.

In March, Voyah Dreamer achieved its 200,000th unit off-line on March 10, and jointly launched a Champion edition model with Huawei; "Voyah Taishan Ultra" began mass production and delivery on March 17, with Voyah Taishan Black Warrior released in parallel; Voyah Taishan X8 had its global debut on March 19, and pre-sales will start in late April.

Great Wall Motors: March sales 106,200 units, up 8.38% year-on-year

Great Wall Motors announced March 2026 sales of 106,200 units, up 8.38% year-on-year; production reached 122,900 units, up 22.80% year-on-year. Cumulative sales for January-March were 269,100 units, up 4.79% year-on-year; cumulative production was 277,800 units, up 7.90% year-on-year.

For the month, overseas sales were 47,142 units, and new energy vehicle sales were 21,857 units; January-March overseas sales were 130,100 units, new energy vehicle sales were 52,630 units. Brand sales in March were: Haval 57,021 units, WEY 7,751 units, Great Wall Pickup 20,450 units, Ora 2,529 units, Tank 18,316 units, other 131 units.

Tesla under pressure in Q1, Wall Street lowers forecasts

According to Reuters, Tesla’s first-quarter deliveries are expected to be lower than the previous quarter. Visible Alpha’s average analyst forecast is approximately 368,900 vehicles, about an 11.8% decline quarter-on-quarter; Tesla’s own compilation of 23 forecasts averages 365,645 vehicles.

Despite these figures still representing a year-on-year increase of around 9.6% — last year’s Q1 suffered from CEO Elon Musk’s political statements triggering boycotts — the quarter-on-quarter decline has caught market attention.

Demand-side pressures come from multiple directions: competition in Europe and China continues to intensify, the US federal government’s $7,500 EV purchase tax credit is expected to expire in September, and some analysts have downgraded annual forecasts from growth to contraction. According to Visible Alpha data, analysts currently expect Tesla to deliver about 1.7 million vehicles for the full year 2026, and about 1.84 million vehicles in 2027.

Risk Warning and DisclaimerThe market carries risks, investments should be made cautiously. This article does not constitute personal investment advice, nor does it take into account individual users’ special investment objectives, financial circumstances or needs. Users should consider whether any opinions, views, or conclusions in this article fit their specific circumstances. Investments made based on this are at your own risk. ```