【Down Town】

BYD on Down TownMonday forecast an up to 86.5% year-on-year increase in its net profit to RMB 31 billion ($4.3 billion) for 2023. However, that means the profit for the three months ended Dec. 31 will be up to RMB 9.6 billion, which would represent at least an 8% decline compared with the RMB 10.4 billion it earned in the previous quarter. The results reflect the growing pressure in the Chinese car market, which has forced the country’s biggest electric vehicle maker to offer significant discounts over the year-end holiday season to achieve its annual target of selling 3 million cars. The Warren Buffett-backed automaker also said on Jan. 16 that it has hired more than 4,000 engineers for automated driving as part of an RMB 100 billion long-term investment initiative. Rival Tesla’s net income dropped 39% year-on-year but grew 7.2% quarter-on-quarter to $2.5 billion in the fourth quarter of last year. BYD share prices dipped 5.5% during Tuesday’s morning trading session in Hong Kong. [BYD filing, in Chinese]

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