BYD‘s Executive Vice President, Stella Li, told Bloomberg on Thursday that the company does not expect a price war to break out in Europe, as it did in its domestic market.
Late last month, BYD cut prices on 22 of its models in China, with its cheapest model — the Seagull — now being priced from 55,800 yuan ($7,750).
The move sparked a price war among Chinese automakers, with several brands following the Shenzhen-based company by announcing discounts on their lineups to ramp-up demand in the final weeks of the second quarter.
BYD is further expanding in Europe and targeting overseas registrations to be half of its total sales volume by 2030.
In May, it reached a new record sales in international markets, delivering over 89,000 vehicles. Sales surged 345% year over year across several countries in Europe.
Despite increasing competition in the old continent, Stella Li said that “in Europe, it’s more than just the price,” adding that, as a brand, “you need to give the service, you need to give the trust.”
To the executive, Europe is “a more mature market.”
“I would say auto industry in China is growing, even with the largest auto industry now, but still compared with Europe, it’s not mature enough,” she stated.
According to Li, when brands come to Europe, it’s not just about “bringing one car” and “selling at a very low price.”
BYD‘s VP recognized that customers will question “how about in three months, six months, if I have some trouble, who should I call?” — which is a “benefit for the local OEMs.”
“They [local brands] are just behind a little bit on technology,” she stated. “So if they can catch up in innovation, they still have a very strong foundation.”
Stella Li concedes that while BYD sparked the current price war in China, the situation is “very extreme” and “not sustainable.”
“All our competition drops the price, then always duplicates what we’re doing,” Li stated, exemplifying, “We’re launching this model today. Two months later, our competition will launch a similar model, bigger, but the price will be $10,000 or $20,000 cheaper.”
“You have to survive, but this is not healthy,” she mentioned. “I would rather everybody focus on their own technology, their own sales strategy, their own marketing strategy, not always copy and duplicate and play a price war.”
BYD launched its best-selling model, the Seagull, in Europe last month. It was renamed as the Dolphin Surf.
It became the cheapest model in the lineup of several European markets. In Spain, prices start from €19,990, while in Italy, where the launch event was held, the model begins at €19,490.
On Thursday, the model was officially launched in the UK, starting from £18,650.
According to the SMMT, BYD sold 3,025 units in the UK last month, a 407.6% surge year over year.
