EVs Help China’s Geely Auto Rebound In June; Stock Gains 6.7% In Hong Kong

Geely Automobile Holdings, a China automaker controlled by billionaire Li Shufu, said on Thursday sales rebounded by 26% in June from a year earlier after the Covid lockdowns disrupted earlier this year.

Led by gains in electric vehicle models, sales increased to 126,595 from 100,163 a year earlier. For the first six months of 2022, sales shrank 3% from the first half of last year to 613,842.

Bright spots in June came from electric vehicles and exports. Total EV sales topped 32,000 compared with only 6,016 a year earlier. Total exports in June rose by 224% from a year earlier to 22,852. (See details here.)

Geely Auto is controlled by Li’s main holding company, Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, which in turn controls global brands including Volvo and Polestar; it also holds a stake in Daimler of Germany.

China is the world’s largest auto market, and Li – also known as Eric Li — is the country’s second-richest auto industry entrepreneur with a fortune worth $26.4 billion on the Forbes Billionaire List today.

The company’s Hong Kong-traded shares rose 6% on Thursday after the June sales report; they have lost 27% of their value in the past year amid Covid-related supply and spending disruptions.

BYD, the China vehicle and battery maker backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway that is the world’s biggest EV maker, said on Sunday sales of new energy vehicles more than tripled in June to 134,036 from 41,036 a year earlier.

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@rflannerychina