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BYD overtakes Tesla to become world’s largest EV seller | The Express Tribune
Tesla faced a turbulent 2025, with shares falling in Q1 amid stiff competition, especially abroad
Musk had openly dismissed BYD in an October 2011 interview with Bloomberg TV, stating, “I don’t think they have a great product,” and adding that he did not consider BYD a competitor. PHOTO: FILE
Elon Musk once laughed off Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD (Build Your Dreams), scoffing in 2011, “Have you seen their car?” That mockery turned into a rude shock on Friday, as BYD dethroned Tesla to become the world’s largest seller of electric vehicles (EVs) on a calendar-year basis.
In a statement released Thursday, BYD reported that sales of its battery-powered vehicles rose nearly 28% to 2.26 million units in 2025. Tesla, on the other hand, delivered 1.64 million vehicles during the same period, marking around 8% drop from 2024 and its second consecutive annual decline. Fourth-quarter deliveries for Tesla fell about 16% compared with the same quarter in 2024, when the company reported 495,570 vehicles.
Musk had openly dismissed BYD in an October 2011 interview with Bloomberg TV, stating, “I don’t think they have a great product,” and adding that he did not consider BYD a competitor. Since then, BYD has experienced a spectacular rise, resulting in Friday’s historic shift in the global EV market.
Tesla endured a turbulent 2025, with shares collapsing in the first quarter amid stiff competition, particularly from Chinese EV makers, and reputational challenges tied to Musk’s political statements, according to ABC News.
Analysts had expected Tesla’s fourth-quarter deliveries to slow less, predicting around 449,000 vehicles, but the elimination of the $7,500 US EV tax credit at the end of September 2025 contributed to the slowdown. In addition to economic factors, Tesla faced political headwinds, with sales struggling in key markets due to Musk’s public support for President Donald Trump and other far-right figures.
Known in Chinese as “Biyadi” — which translates to “Build Your Dreams” in English — the company was originally founded in 1995 as a battery manufacturer. It has since grown into a leading player in China’s highly competitive new energy vehicle market, producing both fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. With China being the world’s largest EV market, BYD has leveraged its affordable, high-volume models to capture significant market share.
While facing hefty tariffs in the United States, BYD is expanding overseas, gaining traction in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. In 2025, the company exported over 1 million vehicles, a 150% increase from the previous year. December alone saw a record 133,000 units shipped abroad, with production soon set to begin in new plants in Brazil and Hungary to bypass trade barriers and strengthen its global presence.
The 2025 leadership shift reflects two contrasting trajectories. Tesla’s deliveries fell due to aging models, political challenges, and the EV tax credit phase-out, while BYD surged nearly 30% by targeting entry-level, high-volume segments that Tesla has yet to penetrate. Analysts note that BYD’s vertical integration — producing its own batteries and semiconductors — creates a scale advantage that protects margins as competitors struggle.
Despite record sales, analysts say BYD could face potential challenges in 2026 due to a Chinese policy shift. Fixed rebates have been replaced with a percentage-based system, requiring vehicles to cost at least 166,700 yuan to receive the maximum 20,000 yuan subsidy. A new 5% purchase tax may further impact demand for budget models like the Seagull, although analysts believe BYD’s premium sub-brands are well-positioned to capture consumers moving upmarket.
Tesla narrowly beat BYD in 2024, with 1.79 million units sold versus BYD’s 1.76 million, but 2025 marks the first time BYD has outproduced the American EV giant.
Despite Tesla shares dipping 0.5% in early New York trading on Friday, analysts at Los Angeles-based Wedbush Securities Inc, a leading American financial services firm, noted that its quarterly sales exceeded some expectations, while highlighting ongoing challenges in Europe and other key markets.
With its affordable models, efficient manufacturing, and growing international footprint, BYD is now positioned to reshape the global EV landscape, signaling a historic shift in the balance of power between Chinese and American automakers.
Business
Stock Market News Live Updates: Sensex Down Over 1,000 Points, Nifty Below 24,900; India VIX Jumps Nearly 20%
Nifty, Sensex Stock Market Today Live Updates: Indian benchmark indices continued their downward trajectory on Monday, tracking weak global cues as geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran escalated.
As of 11:00 AM, the Sensex was trading 1.34 per cent, or 1,086.02 points, lower at 80,201.17, while the Nifty50 declined 1.31 per cent, or 350.55 points, to 24,828.10. Shares of Larsen & Toubro, InterGlobe Aviation and Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone were among the biggest laggards in the Nifty 50 index.
Broader market indices also traded in the red, with the Nifty MidCap and Nifty SmallCap indices falling 0.93 per cent and 1.3 per cent, respectively. Among sectoral indices, the Nifty Auto was the worst performer, sliding more than 2 per cent as shares of Maruti Suzuki India and Mahindra & Mahindra came under pressure.
On the other hand, the Nifty Metal index declined the least, making it the relatively best-performing sectoral index in early trade despite the overall weak market sentiment.
Global Cues
Over the weekend, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several senior officials were killed in a joint US-Israel military operation. The conflict appears set to intensify, with US President Donald Trump vowing to retaliate after American servicemen were killed in Iran’s counterattacks, according to agency reports.
Asian markets tumbled in early Monday trade. Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s Kospi dropped as much as 2.7% and 2.43%, respectively.
On Sunday, US stock futures declined more than 1% after the strikes on Iran. Both the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were reported to have fallen 1.11% each.
During the Asia session, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures and S&P 500 futures were down 0.6% and 0.54%, respectively.
In commodities, oil prices surged amid rising concerns over supply disruptions in the key producing region. Brent crude futures jumped 13.76% to $82.37 per barrel — the highest level since January 2025 — according to Bloomberg data.
Gold and silver futures rose more than 1% as investors turned to safe-haven assets.
Business
Labour parliamentarians urge UK Government to oppose Rosebank oil field
Labour MPs are among a group of more than 60 parliamentarians to have made public their opposition to the planned Rosebank oil field – with one of Sir Keir Starmer’s backbenchers urging the Government to rule against the development and take a stand “against Trump, Reform and their fossil fuel paymasters”.
Clive Lewis is one of more than 50 MPs at Westminster who have signed a pledge from campaign group Uplift to “oppose the Rosebank oil field” and instead “advocate for a properly funded just transition for oil and gas workers and communities”.
Urging the Government to reject the development, Norwich South MP Mr Lewis said: “We must stand our ground against Trump, Reform and their fossil fuel paymasters.
“Approving an enormous new oil field would mean caving in to their anti-climate, anti-renewables agenda that runs completely counter to our values and our long-term interests.”
Scottish Labour MP Chris Murray, another of the Labour MPs to have signed the pledge, said the decision on Rosebank was “an opportunity for the Government to change course”.
It comes as the UK Government continues to consider whether the development of the oil field can go ahead – with Labour now under mounting pressure after the loss of the Gorton and Denton by-election to the Greens on Thursday.
Rosebank, which lies about 80 miles west of Shetland, is the UK’s largest untapped field, containing up to an estimated 300 million barrels of oil.
Drilling there was approved by the Conservative government in 2023 but was then subject to a legal challenge in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling which said the emissions created from burning fossil fuels should be considered when granting permission for new sites.
Now the decision on whether it can proceed lies with Labour ministers – with some 16 Labour MPs having made plain their opposition to the development.
The group includes Mr Lewis, Mr Murray, former Labour shadow chancellor John McDonnell and Scottish Labour’s Brian Leishman.
Former Labour MPs Jeremy Corbyn and Diane Abbott have also signed the pledge, along with a number of Liberal Democrat and Green MPs, SNP MP Chris Law, Plaid Cymru’s Liz Saville Roberts and Paul Maskey of Sinn Fein.
In Scotland a number of Labour MSPs have signed the pledge, along with Green MSPs – including the party’s Scottish co-leader Ross Greer – and former SNP health secretary Michael Matheson.
While previous Scottish first ministers Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf made plain their opposition to Rosebank, First Minister John Swinney has insisted the Scottish Government takes a “case-by-case approach” to new oil and gas developments, stressing these should only proceed if found to be compatible with climate change targets.
Mr Lewis said opposing Rosebank would “show that a Labour Government will stand by the promises we made to the country”.
He added: “There are only so many times we can afford to make mistakes and then change course.
“With Rosebank, we have an opportunity to get it right the first time.”
Mr Murray, the Labour MP for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh, said many locals in his constituency were “deeply concerned about Rosebank and rightly so”.
He added: “Climate change is one of the reasons I came into politics, and opening new oil and gas fields is simply incompatible with our climate commitments.
“With the North Sea’s oil supply dwindling, Scotland’s energy sector must transition to clean energy, or workers risk being left behind.”
Scottish Labour MSP Mercedes Villalba, who has also signed the pledge, argued that “approving projects like Rosebank will lock us into a toxic dependence on volatile, conflict-ridden fossil fuels”.
This would create “another excuse to delay the urgent investment needed to create secure, well-paid jobs for Scotland’s workers”, she added.
Ms Villalba said: “In an increasingly uncertain world, where climate action is relegated in favour of fossil politics, the UK and Scotland must lead the way on the clean energy transition.”
Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, said people in her constituency and across the country “are already facing the consequences of an increasingly unstable climate”.
Highlighting the impact of flooding and “skyrocketing food prices”, she said that “climate impacts are now a daily reality”.
Ms Hobhouse said: “Extreme weather is damaging crops, putting pressure on farmers, and destroying our precious natural environment.
“We cannot ignore these warning signs.
“A massive new oil field like Rosebank would only make matters worse.
“The emissions would be enormous, locking us into decades more pollution when we should be cutting carbon and unlocking the benefits of cheap, renewable energy.”
Approving the Rosebank development would “make a mockery of Labour’s environmental promises”, she said.
A UK Government spokesperson said: “Our priority is to deliver a fair, orderly and prosperous transition in the North Sea in line with our climate and legal obligations, which drives our clean energy future of energy security, lower bills, and good long-term jobs.”
Business
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Discussions over what measures to implement to protect children’s wellbeing will last for three months.
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