Automotive Industry: BYD’s Continued Growth Now Undermines Ford’s Position
The Shenzhen-based company is already one of the top 10 manufacturers and is the third largest in terms of capitalization
BYD, the Chinese car manufacturer, continues its growth, and after entering the world’s top ten manufacturers it looks set to rise to a new position, displacing the historic giant in the sector, the American company Ford, which invented mass production of cars and the assembly line more than a century ago. The Shenzhen-based group’s goal is to sell 4 million cars a year, and in the first nine months of 2024, according to Italian economic newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore, that figure will be 3.25 million versus 3.3 million for the Michigan-based company. Thus, the overtaking could occur in the last three months of 2024.
Founded just in 1995 as a battery manufacturer, BYD has grown over the years into a true automotive giant with 900,000 employees, 100,000 of whom work in the research and development sector, and a very extensive product range that, in addition to the electric cars for which it is known, covers almost every category: from small cars to maxi SUVs and sports cars. All at clearly attractive prices compared to the competition. In addition, the company is involved in renewable energy systems, batteries, and electronics, as well as large vehicles (from buses to trains).
Already in the last quarter it overtook US Tesla in revenue and is third in capitalization; here Tesla still leads, also thanks to the recent rally after Trump’s election, with Japan’s Toyota second, BYD third with 114 billion, and the top European is Ferrari, fifth, with 81 billion.
