Sales figures for major new energy vehicle (NEV) brands in May have been released. While there are significant month-on-month variations among the automakers, the fundamental sales landscape for the year is becoming clear.
LEAPMOTOR continues to lead the pack, delivering 81,569 new vehicles in May, a year-on-year increase of 81% and a month-on-month rise of 14%, setting a new single-month delivery record for a new energy brand. Harmony Intelligent Driving Alliance delivered 46,122 new vehicles, up 41% month-on-month, with its AITO brand contributing 34,320 deliveries, a 48.2% monthly increase. NIO Inc. delivered 37,705 vehicles, marking a 62.3% year-on-year and a 28.4% month-on-month gain. Li Auto delivered 33,350 vehicles, representing an 18% year-on-year decline and a slight sequential drop. XPeng Inc. delivered 32,158 vehicles, a 3.7% month-on-month increase. Xiaomi's automotive division maintained a monthly delivery rate exceeding 30,000 units, with its typical pattern suggesting figures likely surpassed 35,000. Among these, LEAPMOTOR and NIO showed significant growth momentum, Harmony Intelligent Driving Alliance has yet to return to its peak form, while XPeng and Li Auto continue to 'struggle' around the 30,000-unit mark.
Record Breaker and Hopeful Signs
May witnessed the first NEV brand to surpass 80,000 monthly deliveries. LEAPMOTOR not only broke the single-brand monthly delivery record but is also rapidly catching up to mainstream traditional automakers. Of its 80,000+ deliveries, the popular A10 model launched this year alone contributed over 20,000 units. Currently, the A10 is the model with the best chance to challenge Geely's Xingyuan for dominance in the A0-segment market. Notably, 20,000 of LEAPMOTOR's vehicles were sold overseas. Stellantis's investment in LEAPMOTOR is yielding positive results; for LEAPMOTOR, tapping into international markets is a crucial lever for boosting sales. Compared to other NEV brands, LEAPMOTOR's faster overseas expansion is not only due to efficient synergy with Stellantis but also, more importantly, because its product lineup is better suited for international markets. Focused on affordable vehicles, LEAPMOTOR's pricing and product configurations align well with overseas consumer demand. Cumulatively through May, LEAPMOTOR has delivered 263,000 vehicles this year, a 49.6% year-on-year increase. This represents 26% of its annual sales target. To achieve the goal of one million annual sales, it needs to average over 100,000 units per month for the remaining seven months. Currently, it appears LEAPMOTOR has the capability to reach this target. With the sustained popularity of the A10, upcoming refreshes for its C-series models, strong new orders for its flagship D19, and a gradual increase in overseas shipments, LEAPMOTOR is well-positioned to become the first NEV brand to achieve an annual sales milestone of one million units.
Harmony Intelligent Driving Alliance saw a substantial month-on-month increase, primarily driven by growth from its AITO brand. AITO's delivery of over 34,000 vehicles set a new record for the brand itself. The newly launched AITO M6 achieved over 20,000 deliveries in its first month, becoming the brand's new volume driver. With the upcoming launch of the new-generation AITO M9, AITO has strong potential to set new records again.
NIO Inc. also delivered a solid performance in May. The delivery of 37,705 new vehicles gives NIO hope of stabilizing monthly deliveries around the 40,000-unit mark. Unlike other brands, NIO's volume models are concentrated in higher-priced segments, with models like the ES8 and ES9 performing well. The Ledao L80, having successfully replaced the L90, is also showing strong momentum.
XPeng Inc. and Xiaomi's automotive arm are the most consistent in terms of delivery figures among the major NEV players. XPeng is currently holding steady at the 30,000 monthly delivery threshold. With the launch of its flagship GX model featuring a highly competitive pricing strategy, XPeng's monthly deliveries may continue to climb over the next quarter. Xiaomi's deliveries remain stable above 30,000, constrained by its current production capacity.
Li Auto has yet to reverse its sales decline. More importantly, the i6 model now accounts for nearly 70% of its deliveries. How many remaining i6 orders can sustain Li Auto's sales above 30,000 units remains uncertain. On another front, the newly launched L9 series, while attracting attention, secured 10,000 firm orders in its first two weeks—a pace that is relatively slow compared to competitors. Its high price point and the availability of strong technical alternatives from rivals are becoming apparent disadvantages. Although Li Auto has introduced a new "AI Car" concept for the L9 livis, from a technical perspective, this appears to be more of a marketing rebranding, with its core technology offering little differentiation from similar systems offered by competitors.
The Future Competitive Landscape
How will the NEV landscape evolve in the second half of the year? Based on the sales trends of the first five months, if one were to summarize the current situation, LEAPMOTOR cannot be said to dominate alone, but it operates on a distinct path compared to other NEV brands. LEAPMOTOR has traditionally benchmarked itself against traditional automakers like BYD, while NIO, XPeng, Li Auto, Xiaomi, and the brands under Harmony Intelligent Driving Alliance primarily target traditional luxury brands like BBA (BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi). Consequently, LEAPMOTOR covers the broader mainstream market priced between 50,000 and 200,000 RMB, and its product strategy focused on high cost-performance naturally leads to higher volume—a result of market forces. Other NEV brands, with their premium positioning targeting the luxury market, inherently address a smaller market share than the mass-market segment. Therefore, LEAPMOTOR's lead does not imply lackluster sales for other brands; they are simply competing in different arenas.
Harmony Intelligent Driving Alliance employs a different strategy, with its five brands covering a wide consumer base but still lacking a high-volume model below 200,000 RMB. A common question arises: while brands like Zunjie within the alliance are too premium for mass volume, other models, especially the AITO M series, have previously seen explosive popularity. This highlights a current challenge for the alliance: each M-series model launches with a bang but fails to sustain high-volume sales over the long term. For instance, the AITO M9 was the sales champion in its price segment for several consecutive months but now struggles to maintain stable monthly sales. This issue is common across the high-end NEV market, affecting manufacturers like NIO, XPeng, Li Auto, and Xiaomi. New models cannot maintain stable sales over long cycles, relying instead on pre-orders distributed across months, while rapid technological updates lead to consumer hesitation. Until NEV brands resolve this challenge, the sales hierarchy among them appears largely set. LEAPMOTOR is creating new growth points through affordable vehicles and overseas markets. In contrast, sales for premium-focused NEV brands are likely to fluctuate based on the timing and number of new model launches. This issue of unsustainable sales momentum for new launches may be a more significant challenge than product homogeneity.
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