China EVs: Xpeng cuts price of bestselling G6 SUV to maintain high sales volume amid intensifying competition

Guangzhou-based company says the starting price of the G6 will be lowered by 10,000 yuan (US$1,400), and the discount will be effective until the end of this month

Discounts ‘the most effective way of attracting customers’, industry insider says

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An Xpeng G6 is displayed at the Smart China Expo in Chongqing in this file photo from September. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 5:30pm, 19 Dec 2023Updated: 5:37pm, 19 Dec 2023

Chinese electric-vehicle (EV) maker Xpeng has cut the price of its bestselling G6 sport-utility vehicle (SUV) by about 5 per cent to sustain strong sales momentum, in the latest sign of intensifying competition in mainland China’s fast-growing but crowded automobiles market.

The Guangzhou-based company said on Monday that the starting price of the G6 will be lowered by 10,000 yuan (US$1,400) to 199,900 yuan, and the discount will be effective until the end of this month.

Xpeng’s move follows a campaign launched by BYD, the world’s largest EV maker, this month. Shenzhen-based BYD offered discounts of up to 20,000 yuan – or 8 per cent – on its Han-branded EV sedan on December 1. Buyers of its Dynasty series EVs can avail discounts of at least 5,000 yuan.

“Top EV makers have felt the pinch from an economic slowdown,” said Tian Maowei, a sales manager at Yiyou Auto Service in Shanghai. “A reduction in price is seen as the most effective way of attracting customers.”

China’s top EV makers including Xpeng and BYD are facing new competitors, such as smartphone vendor Xiaomi and search-engine giant Baidu, which are luring wealthy motorists away from the established players with smart EVs. The major EV makers are under pressure to stem losses amid escalating competition in the world’s largest EV market. Crowded with 200 players, concerns are mounting over severe overcapacity.

Xpeng, for instance, reported a net loss of 3.89 billion yuan for the third quarter of 2023, up 63.4 per cent on year. Shanghai-based Nio, a domestic rival, posted a net loss of 4.56 billion yuan in the same period, 10.9 per cent wider than a year ago.