China’s biggest automaker, BYD, reportedly slows production in China due to rising inventories. BYD canceled night shifts and cut the production capacity by a third at some plants. The automaker also suspended plans to set up new production lines.
In May 2025, BYD launched steep discounts across 22 models. It slashed prices by up to 53,000 yuan (7,390 USD). This action was motivated by rising car inventories at dealers. A large dealer network in eastern China suspended operations partly due to this issue. Despite an aggressive pricing strategy, inventories continued to grow. As a result, BYD slowed production in China, according to a Reuters report.
BYD slows production in China
Two people with knowledge of the matter shared with Reuters that BYD reduced night shifts at some factories across China. The automaker also delayed plans to add new production lines. These actions reduced the output capacity of at least four factories by a third. There were two reasons for the mentioned actions: saving costs and failing to meet targets.
According to China EV DataTracker, the BYD brand sold 1,151,919 vehicles domestically in January–May 2025, up 11% year over year. The company’s export volume reached 374,200 units in the same period, up 112% Y-O-Y. However, China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) data indicated that BYD’s production growth slowed to 0.2% in May this year.
According to a survey conducted by the China Automotive Dealer Association in May 2025, BYD dealers held an average inventory of 3.21 months. It is the highest among all brands in China, with an average of 1.38 months. So, inventories became a real threat to BYD’s sales network in China.
It is worth mentioning that BYD reached an all-time high in car registrations in China in week 25 (June 16 – 22) this year. BYD registered 83,400 vehicles, up 18.6% from 70,300 units the week before, and rose 24.85% from 66,800 units in the same week last year. In the first three weeks of June, BYD registered 208,550 vehicles in China.
