ICE car sales continue to plummet in China, the top 16 cars are now electric
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- China's auto market hit a record 62.9% NEV market share in May, up from 61.4% in April, with every one of the top 16 best-selling cars now being an EV or plug-in hybrid according to China Passenger Car Association data.
- ICE-only car sales in China collapsed 39% year-over-year in May, while PHEVs dropped 24%, EREVs fell 28%, and hybrids declined 24.4% — meaning the NEV share gain was driven more by gas dying than by EVs surging.
- Battery-electric vehicles were the only powertrain segment to grow, rising 3.9% year-over-year to 637,000 units, even after incentive changes caused a slow first quarter.
- China's NEV exports jumped 112.6% year-over-year in May, with 424,000 units shipped and NEVs accounting for 54% of all Chinese car exports — another record.
- The Geely EX2 led the May sales chart with 38,751 units, followed by the Tesla Model Y (28,911) and Xiaomi SU7 (24,023).
- The Geely Coolray, the lone ICE holdout in last month's top 10, fell from 8th place in April to 17th in May.
Why it matters: With ICE sales down 39% YoY and BEVs the only segment growing (+3.9%), Western automakers still betting on gas are doubling down on a shrinking pool while China — which overtook Germany and Japan as the world's largest car exporter in 2024 — captured 54% of its own car exports as NEVs and shipped 424,000 of them abroad in a single month.
