BYD H1 2026 net profit down 20.5% as China NEV slowdown and currency swings bite

BYD's first-half 2026 results show the pressure building on China's biggest NEV maker. Revenue for January–June came in at RMB 344.82 billion, down 7.13% year on year, while net profit attributable to shareholders slid 20.54% to RMB 12.33 billion. The company blamed a cooling domestic NEV market and foreign-exchange losses from currency volatility. Automotive-related revenue fell 8.98% to RMB 275.34 billion, roughly 80% of the total, while the electronics segment inched up 0.96%.

Volumes tell a similar story: 1,808,511 NEVs were sold in the half, a 15.72% decline, though the trend improved markedly as the year went on — Q2 deliveries fell just 3.24% after a 30.01% plunge in Q1. Exports were the standout, with around 792,000 vehicles shipped overseas, up 67.8% and accounting for roughly 44% of total sales. Q2 alone saw 471,091 units sold abroad, up 82.46% year on year and 46.68% quarter on quarter.

Profitability actually improved at the gross level despite the weaker top line. Gross profit dipped 2.81% to RMB 64.99 billion, but gross margin expanded from 18.01% to 18.85%, helped by the stronger overseas mix. Sales of the premium trio — Denza, Fang Cheng Bao and Yangwang — jumped 61% to reach 12.8% of passenger-car volume. BYD also kept investing heavily: about RMB 28.9 billion went into R&D in the half, roughly 2.3 times its net profit, lifting cumulative R&D spend past RMB 270 billion, while operating cash flow grew 17.3%.

Early signs for the second half look firmer. July sales rose 21.76% year on year to 419,211 units, a third straight month of growth, and overseas passenger-car and pickup sales hit a record 179,841 units — up 124.3% and about 43% of the month's total — underscoring how international markets are now offsetting weakness at home.