UK car sales hit post-Covid high for May as Chinese EV makers gain ground

Registrations up 7% in the month, with battery EVs recording fastest growth and Tesla jumping 45% as motorists look to cut fuel bills

British car sales rose in May to their strongest level for the month since before the Covid pandemic, driven in part by strong growth from the Chinese manufacturers BYD and Chery.

Car registrations rose by 7% to 160,662 during the month, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), a lobby group.

Sales of battery electric cars rose the fastest, accounting for more than 27% of the market.

Chery sold 8,200 cars during May across its Chery, Jaecoo and Omoda brands , while BYD sold 5,200. Over the first five months of the year, BYD’s sales doubled, while Chery’s increased fourfold.

Sales of cars from MG, which is owned by China’s state-owned SAIC, grew by 13% to nearly 7,500. Sales of vehicles by China’s Leapmotor and Geely surged to 900 and 1,100, respectively, after barely selling any a year earlier.

China’s manufacturers have poured new cars into the UK , which has not imposed punitive tariffs on imports. At the same time, demand for electric cars – an industry dominated by China – has risen since the introduction of grants last July, and by rising fuel prices caused by the US-Israeli war in Iran .

Higher demand for electric vehicles did not benefit only Chinese carmakers. America’s Tesla, run by Elon Musk, recorded a 45% sales increase during the month, although sales over the year so far are up only 3%. The news comes ahead of an initial public offering for another of Musk’s companies, SpaceX, which is aiming for a valuation of $1.77tn , which would make it the largest in history.