China's new energy vehicle (NEV) sales continued their strong momentum in August 2026, with 1.643 million units sold, representing 60.6% of all new car sales in the country, according to data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) on September 10.
The August figures mark the second consecutive month that NEVs have accounted for more than 60% of total vehicle sales, underscoring the accelerating shift toward electrified mobility in the world's largest auto market. NEV production also rose to 1.653 million units, up 4.9% month-on-month and 18.9% year-on-year, while sales climbed 5.3% from July and 17.8% from August 2025.
Domestic sales and exports diverge
Domestic NEV sales reached 1.118 million units in August, up 10.9% from July but down 4.6% year-on-year. Within that, passenger NEVs accounted for 1.015 million units, a 10.8% monthly increase but an 8.2% annual decline, while commercial NEVs surged 56.6% year-on-year to 103,000 units. NEVs made up 65.7% of all domestic vehicle sales, with passenger NEVs at 68% and commercial NEVs at 49.3%.
Exports, however, provided a bright spot. In August, China shipped 526,000 NEVs abroad, a 1.3-fold increase year-on-year despite a 5% dip from July. Pure electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 332,000 of those exports, up 1.3 times, while plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) reached 193,000 units, up 1.4 times. For the first eight months of 2026, NEV exports totaled 3.435 million units, a 1.2-fold jump, with BEVs at 2.098 million and PHEVs at 1.337 million.
Year-to-date trends
From January to August 2026, cumulative NEV production and sales reached 10.668 million and 10.65 million units respectively, up 10.8% and 10.7% year-on-year. NEVs now represent 52.4% of all new car sales in China for the period. Domestic NEV sales for the eight months stood at 7.215 million units, down 10.8% year-on-year, while exports soared.
By powertrain, BEVs saw double-digit growth in both production and sales during August, while PHEVs experienced a slight production increase but a sales dip. Fuel cell vehicles saw a sharp production decline but a sales increase of over 10%.
The data, reported by EV视界 (EV Vision), highlights China's continued dominance in the global EV market, with NEVs now accounting for over half of all new car sales in the country on a year-to-date basis.
Based on reporting by EV视界. Edited and published in English by geisou.
