With the arrival of a new round of national subsidies and the resumption of trade-in policies across various regions, coupled with local incentives and automaker discounts, the overall auto market in August showed steady improvement. The CPCA forecasts that the total retail market for narrowly defined passenger vehicles in August will reach approximately 1.94 million units, up 6.2% month-on-month and 2.0% year-on-year. New energy vehicle retail sales are expected to hit 1.1 million units, with the penetration rate further increasing to 56.7%.

The top five Chinese automakers (BYD, Geely, Chery, Changan, and Great Wall Motor), which account for a significant portion of China's auto sales, also saw a steady rebound in August, with all achieving year-on-year and month-on-month growth. In terms of ranking, BYD remained in first place with over 370,000 units sold, though its overall growth rate lagged behind the other four. Geely and Chery, each selling around 250,000 units, ranked second and third, respectively. Changan's sales also recovered rapidly, nearing 200,000 units and placing fourth. Great Wall Motor, ranked fifth, sold 110,000 units in August, hitting a new yearly high.

First, let's look at BYD, which remained in first place. In August, BYD sold 373,626 vehicles, up 0.15% year-on-year and 8.52% month-on-month. Although BYD's overall growth rate slowed, its sales volume remained relatively stable, maintaining around 380,000 units for five consecutive months.

Breaking down by brand, the Dynasty and Ocean series sold 342,838 units in August, continuing to serve as the main sales pillars. Among the premium brands, Fangchengbao performed notably well, with 16,265 units sold in August, while Denza sold 11,993 units and Yangwang sold 405 units. From January to August, BYD's cumulative sales reached 2,863,876 units, achieving 52.07% of its annual sales target of 5.5 million units. It is expected that BYD's cumulative sales will surpass 3 million units next month.

Geely continued to rank second. In August, Geely sold 237,717 vehicles, up 38.04% year-on-year and 5.24% month-on-month, marking the 11th consecutive month of over 100,000 units sold. Its three major brands—Geely Galaxy, Lynk & Co, and Zeekr—all maintained positive sales growth. Among them, Geely Galaxy saw the fastest growth, with August sales reaching 26,510 units, up over 138% year-on-year and around 59% month-on-month. Lynk & Co sold 22,528 units in August, up over 20% year-on-year, while Zeekr sold 18,015 units, up 46% year-on-year. From January to August, Geely's cumulative sales reached 1,287,741 units, up 34% year-on-year, achieving 63.24% of its annual sales target of 3 million units.

Chery followed Geely closely, ranking third. In August, Chery's cumulative sales reached 242,736 units, up 14.56% year-on-year and 8.15% month-on-month. By brand, Chery sold 162,396 units in August, surpassing 1 million units year-to-date. Exeed sold 7,659 units, Jetour sold 54,179 units, and iCAR sold 4,820 units. However, Chery did not disclose sales data for the Zhijie brand, likely due to its recent sluggish performance.

This performance may soon turn around, as Chery launched the all-new Zhijie R7/S7 models at the end of August, receiving over 10,000 orders within an hour. Additionally, in August, Chery introduced several new models, including the Shanhai L7 PLUS, 2026 Exeed LX, Fengyun X3, and Fengyun X3 PLUS, and began pre-sales or blind orders for the Fengyun X3L and Zongheng G700. From January to August, Chery's cumulative sales reached 1,727,299 units, up 14.5% year-on-year, achieving 57.58% of its estimated annual sales target of 3 million units (based on growth targets).

Changan ranked fourth. In August, Changan sold 196,227 vehicles, up 29.61% year-on-year and 10.43% month-on-month, largely driven by the rapid growth of brands like Avatr and Shenlan. Among them, Avatr sold 10,565 units in August, up 185% year-on-year, marking six consecutive months of over 10,000 units sold. Shenlan delivered 28,235 units in August, up 40% year-on-year. Additionally, Changan did not disclose sales data for the Qiyuan brand in August. From January to July, Changan's cumulative sales reached 1,524,558 units, up 7.98% year-on-year, while Changan Automobile (including joint ventures) sold 1,799,760 units, achieving 59.99% of its annual sales target of 3 million units.

Great Wall Motor ranked fifth. In August, Great Wall sold 115,558 vehicles, up 22.33% year-on-year and 10.72% month-on-month. Multiple brands under Great Wall saw year-on-year sales growth, with Haval selling 68,912 units, up 22.69% year-on-year; Wey selling 8,028 units, up 167.51% year-on-year; and Tank selling 20,022 units, up 22.46% year-on-year. With the upgrade of the 2025 Ora Good Cat & Good Cat GT, Ora's sales rose 21.47% month-on-month to 5,223 units. Meanwhile, Great Wall's premium models gained traction, with sales of models priced above 200,000 yuan reaching 31,631 units in August, up 50.57% year-on-year. From January to August, Great Wall's cumulative sales reached 789,719 units, up 5.94% year-on-year.

In terms of new energy vehicles, BYD led with over 370,000 units sold. Geely followed, with new energy vehicle sales reaching 147,347 units in August, up 95% year-on-year and 13% month-on-month, achieving a new energy penetration rate of 58.9%. This was driven by the expansion of its new energy product lineup, including the Xingyao 8, Galaxy A7, and Lynk & Co 900. From January to August, Geely's cumulative new energy vehicle sales surpassed 1 million units, reaching 1,002,622 units. Looking ahead, Geely plans to launch heavyweight models like the Zeekr 9X, Galaxy M9, and Lynk & Co 10 EM-P, which will further boost its new energy vehicle sales.

Chery's new energy vehicle sales reached 71,218 units in August, up 53.1% year-on-year and 13.24% month-on-month, with a new energy penetration rate of 29.34%. The growth was mainly driven by the strong sales of the Fengyun A9L. From January to August, Chery's cumulative new energy vehicle sales reached 495,955 units, up 81.8% year-on-year, ranking among the fastest-growing in the industry.

During the same period, Changan's (including joint ventures) new energy vehicle sales reached 56,053 units, up 13.47% month-on-month, with a new energy penetration rate of 38.03%. From January to August, Changan's (including joint ventures) cumulative sales reached 620,667 units. Great Wall's new energy vehicle sales reached 37,495 units, up 50.92% year-on-year and 8.39% month-on-month, with a new energy penetration rate of 32.45%, driven by the growth of the Blue Mountain and All New Gaoshan models. From January to August, Great Wall's cumulative new energy vehicle sales reached 232,502 units.

In terms of overseas markets, Chery continued to lead Chinese auto exports in August, with 129,472 units shipped, up 32.3% year-on-year. Not only did Chery exceed 100,000 units in exports for four consecutive months, but it also set a new monthly export record. From January to August, Chery's cumulative exports reached 798,804 units, up 10.8% year-on-year. BYD remained in second place, with 80,813 units exported in August, up 165.39% year-on-year and slightly increasing month-on-month. From January to August, BYD's cumulative exports reached 615,816 units, showing strong growth momentum.

Apart from Chery and BYD, the export levels of the other three automakers were relatively close. Changan's (including joint ventures) export volume reached 56,053 units in August, up 13.47% month-on-month. Great Wall exported 45,166 units, up 11.65% year-on-year and 9.93% month-on-month. Geely exported 36,077 units, down 22% year-on-year but up 2.28% month-on-month. With Great Wall breaking through from 30,000 to 40,000 units, Geely remains the only one among the top five Chinese automakers with exports still below 40,000 units.

Following the recovery in August, the market has entered the "Golden September and Silver October" period. This month, trade-in subsidies will continue across various regions, and multiple automakers will launch or deliver new models around the Chengdu Auto Show. With policies in place and "new ammunition" replenished, a new round of intense competition has begun.