China sold 1.973 million passenger vehicles in wholesales in January 2026, a year-on-year decrease of 6.2%. The BYD Song topped the list with 42,227 units sold, followed closely by Geely Galaxy EX2 (Xingyuan), and Geely Boyue, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

Currently, the BYD Song series consists of the 2026 Song Pro DM-i, 2026 Song L DM-i, Song L DM-i ADAS Edition, Song Pro DM-i ADAS Edition, Song L EV ADAS Edition, and 2025 Song L EV. Another additional, the Song Ultra EV, is expected to officially enter the market in the third quarter of this year.

Among the 17 models with wholesale volume exceeding 20,000 units, new energy vehicles (NEVs) dominated the list, accounting for 13 of the 17 models. The Tesla Model Y ranked fourth with 38,916 units sold, and the Xiaomi YU7 ranked fifth with 37,869 units sold.

Looking at the overall market, the wholesale penetration rate of new energy vehicles reached 43.8% in January, an increase of 1.3% compared with the same period last year, and the penetration rate of domestic brand NEVs was as high as 57.9%.

For comparison, China sold 1.544 million passenger vehicles in retail sales, a year-on-year decrease of 13.9%. NEV retail sales were 596,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 20.0%, with a penetration rate of falling to 38%.

Source: CPCA, BYD

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