Chinese electric-vehicle growth continued in December, with BYD taking the crown of largest global seller from Tesla for the second time. Growth alone, however, wasn’t enough to give all Chinese EV stocks a boost on Thursday.

Tesla rivals BYD, Nio Li Auto, XPeng and Zeekr all reported record December China EV sales as the price war intensified.

The Elon Musk-led company sold 1.79 million vehicles last year, a sobering reminder of the real-world challenges for EV makers.

Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company is projecting strong growth in 2025, but the results underscore the challenges ahead.

Tesla shares fell 3 per cent at the opening bell Thursday, but shares are up more than 50 per cent over the last 12 months.

Tesla reported the first full-year drop in sales in its history as a public company Thursday, as increased competition and slowing demand for electric vehicles hit its results.

BYD is closing in on Tesla after a record December closed off a good 2024 for the Chinese EV giant. The company sold 4.25 million new energy passenger vehicles last year, according to data released on Wednesday.

Chinese car maker BYD saw sales jump at the end of last year, leaving it closer to claiming the title of the world's best-selling electric vehicle (EV) maker of 2024. The company says it sold 207,734 EVs in December,

China’s BYD Co. enjoyed a year-end surge to push total sales to 4.25 million passenger cars last year, narrowing its gap with Tesla Inc. as the two vie for the crown of top-selling electric-vehicle maker of 2024.