Inside China’s 2025 Auto Sales Playbook

Ever wondered why Chinese car brands, including those already established overseas (Malaysia included), seem to be launching new models at a relentless pace? Part of the answer lies in how aggressively these companies set – and chase – their annual sales targets back at home.

Year-end figures compiled by CarNewsChina show that Chinese automakers posted wildly different results in meeting their 2025 goals, revealing a growing gap between ambition and actual market performance.

BYD remained China’s largest automaker by volume, delivering 4.6 million vehicles during the year. However, this still amounted to just 83.7% of its ambitious 5.5 million-unit target, highlighting the pressure even market leaders face to sustain rapid growth.

Geely closed 2025 with just over 3.02 million vehicles sold, narrowly surpassing its revised 3 million-unit target. The milestone came after the company raised its original goal of 2.71 million units mid-year, making its performance appear more modest when judged against the higher benchmark.

Chery recorded 2.63 million vehicle sales, reaching roughly 80.7% of its 3.26 million-unit target. While volumes remained strong, the brand still fell short of its internal expectations.

Great Wall Motor (GWM) posted the largest shortfall among major players. With 1.32 million vehicles sold, it achieved only 33% of its highly ambitious 4 million-unit target, according to the CarNewsChina data.

In contrast, several EV-focused brands comfortably outperformed their goals. Leapmotor delivered nearly 597,000 vehicles, beating its target by close to 20%. Xpeng also exceeded expectations, selling over 429,000 units to surpass its target by more than 22%.

Xiaomi Auto stood out in its first full year of production. The company delivered more than 400,000 vehicles, exceeding its 350,000-unit target, with Dec 2025 sales alone topping 50,000 units, although precise figures were not disclosed.

Others struggled to keep pace. HIMA achieved just under 59% of its one-million-unit target, while Li Auto delivered 406,343 vehicles, reaching around 63.5% of its full-year goal.

Nio ended the year on a stronger note, with December deliveries rising more than 30% month-on-month. Even so, its total 2025 sales of 326,028 units meant it reached only 74.1% of its annual target.

Taken together, the figures compiled by CarNewsChina illustrate an industry under intense pressure to grow, where aggressive targets, rapid model rollouts, and global expansion are increasingly becoming survival tools rather than optional strategies.