Supply growth after decline

Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers NIO and XPeng reported a rise in deliveries in March after a decline in February, as well as new delivery records for the first quarter of 2021. XPeng's autopilot system set a record for the longest autonomous driving time with minimal human involvement.

Shares in Chinese electric vehicle makers NIO (NIO) and Xpeng (XPEV) were equally up 5.5 per cent before trading opened on Thursday after the companies released their delivery reports.

Number of NIO electric vehicle deliveries

NIO reported deliveries of 7,257 of its SUVs in March, a significant improvement on the drop to 5,578 units in February due to the Chinese New Year and better than 7,225 units in January. NIO sales in March this year were 373% higher compared to March last year.

For the entire Q1 2021, NIO delivered 20,060 vehicles, up 16.3% from the previous fourth quarter and a new quarterly record of 423% higher than last year. The NIO ES6 SUV was again the top seller in March, followed by the EC6, with the larger ES8 in third place in sales. Combined deliveries of the ES8, ES6 and EC6 have reached 95,701 vehicles as of 31 March 2021.

Deliveries of the first premium sedan ET7 NIO are scheduled to start in the first quarter of 2022.

Last week, Nio warned of suspending its plant for five days due to a semiconductor shortage, lowering its first-quarter delivery forecast from a range of 20,000 to 20,500 cars to an expectation of delivering around 19,500 cars.

Due to the issue of a global chip shortage, Nio's management may further reduce the pace of production and deliveries in the second quarter.

NIO shares have fallen 20% since the start of 2021.

Number of Xpeng electric car deliveries

XPeng deliveries in March were 5,102 units, including 2,855 P7 sedans and 2,247 G3 SUVs, a 130% increase from February and a 384% increase from March last year. For the first quarter of 2021, XPeng increased its deliveries to 13,340 Smart EVs, up from 12,964 units in the previous fourth quarter and up 487% on the first quarter of last year, demonstrating a steady growth trend.

XPeng plans to introduce its third production model in the second quarter of 2021, with deliveries scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2021.