Chinese EV Startups See Sales Bounce Back in March

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After a slow start to the year, sales for Chinese electric vehicle startups experienced a significant rebound in March.

Leading the market, Leapmotor Technology, the top-selling new energy vehicle startup last year, announced it sold 50,029 cars in March—a 78% increase from February and a 35% rise compared to the same month last year, making it the nationwide leader.

Li Auto took the second spot in sales last month with 41,053 vehicles sold, marking a 55% growth from the previous month and a 12% increase year-over-year.

Nio’s sales jumped by 71% from February and soared 136% from last year, totaling 35,486 units in March. Meanwhile, Xpeng Motors delivered 27,415 cars in March, up 80% from the month prior but down 17% compared to the same period last year.

China’s new energy vehicle (NEV) market experienced a slowdown in the first two months of the year, primarily due to the expiration of purchase tax exemptions for electric cars. As a result, total EV sales declined 7% year-over-year to 1.7 million units, according to industry data. Despite this, most EV startups still reported overall growth in the first quarter, driven mainly by a substantial rebound in March.

In the first quarter, Leapmotor sold 110,155 units—up 26% from the previous year. Li Auto delivered 95,142 vehicles, an increase of 2.5%. Nio’s deliveries nearly doubled, reaching 83,465 units. Conversely, Xpeng’s sales declined by 33%, totaling 62,682 units.

It’s worth noting that in China, auto sales for January and February are often combined because the Chinese New Year holiday, which impacts sales patterns, falls on different months each year.

Traditional automakers’ EV brands also generally showed positive results last month. GAC Hyptec Aion, the recently reorganized EV division of GAC Group (formerly GAC Aion), reported sales of 38,268 vehicles, a 231% jump from February and a 12% increase year-over-year.

Changan Automobile’s electric brand Deepal sold 31,742 EVs in March, reflecting an 88% month-over-month growth and a 30% increase compared to the same period last year.