Most Chinese automakers have already announced their 2026 vehicle delivery targets, expecting slower growth this year as vehicle sales ease off from the rapid pace of previous years.
The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) predicts that the retail sales of domestic passenger cars will grow by 1% in 2026%.
According to data by China’s Passenger Car Association (CPCA), passenger new energy vehicle (NEV) retail sales in China reached 12.86 million units in 2025, a 17% year-over-year increase.
They represented a 54% share in the market.
Despite slower demand overall and policy changes regarding NEV purchases, zero-emission vehicle registrations are expected to reach 61% by year-end.
XPeng
Earlier this week, local media outlet 36Kr reported that XPeng has set a target of between 550,000 and 600,000 vehicle deliveries for this year.
The goal represents a 28.1-39.7% growth compared to the 429,445 vehicles delivered in 2025.
Last year, the Guangzhou-based automaker aimed to deliver 380,000 vehicles globally.
The company achieved this target one month ahead of schedule, becoming the first automaker to meet its annual guidance.
The strong performance was driven by both an expanded vehicle lineup and a doubling of its overseas market — a goal for 2025 as well.
Additionally, the company began producing extended-range electric vehicles in late 2025, marking its entry into the hybrid segment after having only produced BEVs.
Nio Group
In the beginning of 2025, Nio planned to double vehicle deliveries from the prior year, setting a target of about 442,000 units.
However, that guidance was trimmed as the company revised its fourth-quarter guidance, first to 150,000 units and then to between 120,000 and 125,000 units.
By the end of 2025, Nio delivered 326,028 vehicles, with 124,807 delivered in the final quarter. This represented about 73.8% of the company’s initial annual target.
Looking ahead to 2026, Nio plans to increase vehicle deliveries by 40–50%, aiming for 456,000 to 489,000 units.
The guidance was announced by founder and CEO William Li during a ceremony celebrating the rollout of the company’s one-millionth mass-produced vehicle.
The company is betting on large SUVs to drive demand in the coming months.
After launching its record-selling third-generation ES8 late last year, Nio is set to debut the flagship ES9. A new edition of the discontinued ES7 has been spotted in China earier this week.
Additionally, its sub-brand Onvo will launch the five-seat L80, following the L90, which launched in summer 2025 and boosted Nio Group‘s sales in its first three months.
Leapmotor
In October 2025, Stellantis-backed Leapmotor announced that it had completed production of its one millionth vehicle, becoming the second automaker to reach the milestone — after Li Auto.
The brand rapidly expanded overseas, supported by the extensive global network of the Antonio Filosa-led company.
Of these, 596,600 were delivered in 2025 — which indicates that the company successfully reached its guidance of 500,000 units for that year.
Now, Leapmotor wants to double deliveries to 1 million vehicles this year.
Xiaomi
Xiaomi launched its EV unit in March 2024 and, in less than two years, has produced 500,000 units of its SU7 sedan (and SU7 Ultra) and YU7 SUV.
Last year, Xiaomi delivered 410,000 vehicles in its domestic market, as the company is only planning overseas expansion in 2027.
At the start of 2025, Xiaomi initially targeted 300,000 annual deliveries, which was raised to 350,000 units in March.
Later in the year, the company increased the target again by 50,000 units, bringing the total to 400,000 vehicles.
For 2026, Xiaomi aims to deliver 550,000 vehicles, representing approximately 34% growth.
Li Auto
Li Auto, which was once a key player in the industry, saw sales slump in 2025, despite the introduction of new models, including fully electric.
The Beijing-based automaker trimmed its 2025 delivery target from 700,000 units to 640,000 in May, citing “weaker than expected” orders for the revamped Li L6 (the brand’s best-selling model).
Li Auto registered a total of 406,343 vehicles last year, which represented a 18.8% decrease year over year.
Due to increasing investment in the EREV segment and the underperformance of its models in their respective categories, the brand is reportedly revising its strategy and being forced to speed up its product cycle.
Li Auto did not reveal, as of press time, a delivery guidance for 2026.
BYD and Geely
BYD and Geely Auto, two of the biggest automakers in China, have been able to reach their annual guidance in 2025, with the latter expecting growth this year.
BYD, however, had revised its yearly target in mid-2025, according to a Reuters report, from an initial plan of delivering 5.5 million vehicles to nearly 1 million below.
The company delivered 4,602,000 vehicles across the globe last year, representing a 7.7% increase year-over-year.
As of Friday morning, the company had not yet set a target for 2026 deliveries.
Geely Auto, which is a part of the Geely Holding Group (backer of Volvo, Zeekr and Polestar, and several other brands), achieved deliveries slightly over its 3 million-unit guidance in 2025.
The brand is targeting 15% growth in 2026, with a guidance of 3,450,000 vehicles.
