Warren Buffett-backed BYD Co. is on track to surpass Tesla Inc. as the leading global seller of electric vehicles (EVs), marking a symbolic shift in this rapidly growing market and highlighting China’s growing influence in the automotive industry.
Tesla is losing EV race to Buffett-backed BYD
According to Bloomberg, China-based BYD is expected to achieve this milestone in the current quarter. China, now a key contender in global passenger car exports, shipped 1.3 million EVs out of 3.6 million total vehicles as of October this year. Despite BYD being relatively unknown outside China, its success is evident through substantial investments, including Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, which has held an almost 15% stake since 2008.
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The legendary investor started publicly reducing its stake in BYD in August this year. It previously had a 20.5% stake in the EV manufacturer. Buffett’s remaining stake – 164 million shares – is thought to be valued at north of $4bn. Buffett’s selling also had a significant impact on BYD’s stock price, which is up 8.4% year-to-date and down 12.5% in the last three months. Berkshire’s senior officials said in the past that their BYD investment is mostly a way to increase exposure to EV batteries.
BYD’s milestone comes as global manufacturers are welcoming an uptick in demand for cars. According to the latest data, Toyota is set to keep its title as the world’s best-selling carmaker as its sales jumped 12% year-over-year to nearly 1 million units for the month of November. In China, Toyota also witnessed sales rise 17% to 164,524 units, while production was up 14%.
