BYD Expects Full-Year Sales Growth as Battery Swapping and Energy Storage Go Global

Key Takeaways

• BYD expects full-year sales growth; October exports reached 170,200 units
• Li Shufu endorses battery swapping; Geely holds a 30% stake in NIO Power
• A wave of long-term energy storage export agreements is rising, with the Middle East as the focal market

BYD: Full-Year Sales Expected to Grow, Overseas Markets the Main Increment

Li Yunfei, general manager of BYD's brand and public relations department, said at a media briefing after the Yangwang Dingyao launch event that BYD's full-year sales this year will rise slightly from last year, partly driven by higher overseas growth. Backed by second-generation blade batteries and fast-charging technology, the domestic market is performing better than the overall domestic market. (Source: IT Home/Cailian Press)

In terms of data, BYD sold about 490,200 new energy vehicles in October, up 10.97% year on year; cumulative sales in the first 10 months were about 3.6217 million units, down 2.16% year on year. The split is clearly diverging: October battery electric vehicle sales were about 305,700 units, up 37.38% year on year; plug-in hybrid sales were about 177,400 units, down 17.22% year on year. In the first 10 months, cumulative BEV sales were about 1.9357 million units, up 5.86% year on year; cumulative PHEV sales were about 1.626 million units, down 11.02% year on year. October exports of new energy vehicles reached 170,200 units. (Source: IT Home)

These numbers show that BYD's growth is shifting from plug-in hybrids to battery electric vehicles and exports. Whether the full-year "slight growth" target can be met depends on the pace of overseas deliveries in the final two months and the sustainability of domestic BEV models.

Battery Swapping: Geely-NIO Cooperation Moves from Agreement to Capital Tie-Up

At the World Internet Conference Wuzhen Summit's Automotive Night Talk, Geely Holding Group Chairman Li Shufu said Geely fully endorses the battery swapping model. He noted that EV batteries degrade and fail, but a car's service life is more than seven, eight or nine years, and this contradiction must be solved. "Directly swapping in a brand-new battery pack is too expensive; disassembling, refurbishing and repairing the battery is also very costly. So battery swapping is the way to solve this problem." (Source: IT Home/Observer)

This was the first public dialogue since NIO and Geely reached a battery charging and swapping strategic cooperation on Sept 28. Under the previously disclosed arrangement, Geely Holding Group will invest in NIO Power with its 100% equity in Yiyi Interconnect and 640 million yuan in cash; after the transaction is completed, it will hold a 30% stake in NIO Power. Yiyi Interconnect's battery swapping business for operating vehicles will be merged into NIO Power, and the two sides will jointly build unified consumer-facing battery swapping technology and standards. Geely will develop consumer-facing battery swapping models, and NIO Power will provide battery swapping services for them. (Source: IT Home)

Li Shufu's remarks put "batteries and vehicles having different lifespans" on the table. Whether battery swapping can expand from operating vehicles to consumer private cars depends on the implementation of unified standards and actual sales of battery swapping models; it is still in the investment phase.

Energy Storage Going Global: Beyond Long-Term Agreement Numbers, Watch Delivery and Adaptability

At the end of 2026, a wave of long-term energy storage export agreements emerged. EVE signed a 206GWh mega-order, and Gotion and BYD are also building positions in the Middle East market. A TMTPost report cautions that beneath the big numbers, real delivery and adaptability need to be watched, and it discusses whether energy storage exports are leading to a "fixed supplier list." (Source: TMTPost)

The Middle East has become the concentration point for this round of energy storage orders, but there is usually a time lag between long-term agreement frameworks and actual grid-connected delivery. Whether orders can be converted into revenue depends on localized delivery, grid adaptability and project financing progress — variables that need to be tracked going forward.

Industry: Range Extenders Double, Large Cars Cluster, Energy Investment Ranks First Globally

Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, disclosed that from January to October this year there were 129 new models, including 42 range-extender models, 26 more than the same period last year; 68 battery electric models, 11 more than the same period; 31 narrow-sense plug-in hybrids, 6 fewer than the same period; and 9 conventional fuel vehicles, 4 fewer than the same period. New energy vehicles show a "dumbbell" structure: the share of large cars over 5 meters rose from 34% in 2024 to 58% in 2026, while the share of the 4.5-5 meter segment fell from 55% to 40%. (Source: IT Home)

The overall car market is under pressure: national passenger car retail sales in October were 1.693 million units, down 25% year on year and up 5% month on month; cumulative retail sales this year reached 15.027 million units, down 22% year on year. (Source: IT Home)

On the energy side, the Global Energy Transition Report (2026) shows that in the first half of this year, coal power's share of China's electricity generation fell to 49.7%, below 50% for the first time; China's total energy investment is expected to reach $940 billion in 2026, the world's largest; China supplies 70% of the world's wind power equipment and 80% of its photovoltaic module equipment. In the first three quarters, China added 180 million kilowatts of renewable energy capacity, accounting for 71.7% of all new capacity; as of the end of September, renewable energy capacity reached 2.518 billion kilowatts, up 14.6% year on year, about 60.94% of total capacity, with solar becoming the largest power source by installed capacity. (Source: IT Home/CCTV Finance)

In addition, Linglong Tire President Zhou Lingkun predicts that China's new energy vehicle exports will exceed 5 million units in 2026. (Source: kaopunews/China Newsweek)