<div id="readability-page-1"><blockquote><ul><li>China's NEV retail penetration rate reached 59.5% between April 1 and April 12.</li><li>Overall passenger vehicle retail sales in China stood at 377,000 units during April 1-12, down 20% year-on-year.</li></ul></blockquote><figure id="attachment_139375"><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cnevpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2026041509542614.jpg?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="1600" height="900" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cnevpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2026041509542614.jpg"/><figcaption id="caption-attachment-139375">(A Nissan N7 on display at the Shanghai Auto Show in April 2025. Image credit: CnEVPost)</figcaption></figure><p>Retail sales of new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China declined in the first 12 days of April compared to the same period last year, as the slow season persists.</p><p>Passenger NEV retail sales in China totaled 224,000 units between April 1 and April 12, dropping 11% year-on-year but rising 7% from the same period last month, data released Wednesday by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed.</p><p>During this period, the retail penetration rate of NEVs reached 59.5%, indicating that the transition to electrification continues to accelerate despite an overall market downturn.</p>    <div>        <p><span>Join us on </span>            Telegram            <span> or </span>            Google News        </p>    </div><p>Year-to-date, cumulative retail sales of passenger NEVs in China stood at 2.132 million units, down 20% year-on-year.</p><p>Wholesale shipments of passenger NEVs in China were 199,000 units during April 1-12, falling 29% from a year earlier and 15% from the same period last month.</p><p>Year-to-date, cumulative wholesale shipments of passenger NEVs in China reached 2.927 million units, down 7% year-on-year.</p><p>The underperformance of wholesale shipments compared to retail sales suggests that automakers are proactively scaling back their NEV production pace to ease inventory pressure on dealers.</p><p>Overall passenger vehicle retail sales in China were 377,000 units during April 1-12, down 20% year-on-year and 12% lower than the same period last month.</p><p>The first week of April was affected by the Qingming Festival holiday, resulting in fewer effective sales days, while the end-of-quarter push in the first quarter of slowed down the transaction pace at the beginning of the month, the CPCA said.</p><p>In the first week of April, April 1-6, average daily retail sales of passenger vehicles in China were 24,594 units, down 30% year-on-year and down 20% from the same period in March. The figure was slightly revised down from the previously reported 24,755 units.</p><p>In the second week of April, April 7-12, average daily retail sales of passenger vehicles in China were 38,159 units, down 13% year-on-year and 5% from the same period in March.</p><p>Consumers' wait-and-see sentiment has intensified due to the upcoming Beijing Auto Show in late April. A recent flurry of new technology launch events has made potential buyers more inclined to wait for new models to hit the market, according to the CPCA.</p><p>Between April 1 and April 12, wholesale shipments of all passenger vehicles in China were 374,000 units, down 29% compared to the same period last year and 21% lower than the same period last month.</p><p>During April 1-6, average daily wholesale shipments of passenger vehicles in China were 25,392 units, down 28% year-on-year and 17% from the same period last month. This figure was slightly revised down from the previously reported 25,459 units.</p><p>During April 7-12, average daily wholesale shipments of passenger vehicles in China were 37,016 units, down 29% year-on-year and 24% from the same period last month.</p><p>Year-to-date, wholesale shipments of passenger vehicles in China totaled 6.24 million units, down 8% compared to the same period last year.</p><p>The CPCA said that the current weakness in wholesale shipments is a passive adaptation to sluggish demand, as well as a rational choice by automakers to control the pace of production and sales.</p>    <div>        <div>            <p><img width="768" height="432" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cnevpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2026041100254063-768x432.jpg?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cnevpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2026041100254063-768x432.jpg"/>                            </p>        </div>        <div>            <p>Automakers' share in China NEV market in Mar: BYD tops with 22.8%, Tesla 4th with 6.6%</p>            <p>BYD captured a 22.8% share of China's NEV retail market in March, expanding its lead over Geely.</p>                    </div>    </div>                                                                                    </div>

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<p>China's NEV retail sales fell 11% year-on-year in the first 12 days of April, totaling 224,000 units, while overall passenger vehicle sales dropped 20% to 377,000 units. Despite this decline, the NEV retail penetration rate reached 59.5%. Year-to-date, cumulative NEV retail sales are down 20% at 2.132 million units. Wholesale shipments also decreased by 29% to 199,000 units, indicating automakers are reducing production to manage inventory. The market slowdown is attributed to seasonal factors and consumer hesitation ahead of the Beijing Auto Show.</p>

China NEV retail sales fall 11% in first 12 days of Apr