(Yicai Global) June 8 -- BYD, the Chinese automaker backed by legendary investor Warren Buffett, is now worth more than Volkswagen after becoming the world’s third-biggest car manufacturer in April and beating all others for new energy vehicle sales in the same month.

BYD’s value reached USD121.9 billion on the Shenzhen stock market yesterday, putting it in the top three for the second time since last November and surpassing VW’s USD117 billion. Tesla was the most valuable at USD740.6 billion, while Japan’s Toyota Group was second at USD229 billion.

BYD’s shares climbed further today in Shenzhen and Hong Kong after a senior executive told Chinese broadcaster CGTN that the Shenzhen-based company, which is also a huge maker of power packs for electric vehicles, is set to supply batteries to Tesla “very soon.”

The firm’s Shenzhen-listed stock [SHE: 002594] added 4 percent to close at CNY327.41 (USD48.93), while in Hong Kong, BYD [HKG: 1211] gained 2.8 percent to HKD302 (USD38.48).

BYD sold nearly 106,000 vehicles in April, topping the global ranking, according to the latest data released by data website EV Sales. Tesla came in second at about 66,000.

Tesla sold 180,000 cars worldwide in March, exceeding the 100,000 mark and surpassing BYD for the first time this year. But the US firm’s sales plunged in April, mainly because of a production stop at its Shanghai plant along with logistics and transport bottlenecks due to the resurgence of Covid in China. BYD’s supply chain was more resilient, so the pandemic flareup had a lesser impact.

BYD and Tesla are positioned differently, according to auto industry analyst Zhang Xiang. The average price of BYD’s vehicles is lower than that of Tesla, with some models costing about CNY100,000 (USD15,000), Zhang said, adding that BYD’s price range is wider.

The Chinese automaker’s sales surged as it has accumulated much experience in the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle market, which is becoming more popular and is developing rapidly, Zhang noted. BYD is also accelerating the expansion of product pipelines.

In May, BYD sold 114,900 NEVs, up 8.4 percent from April and 250 percent from a year earlier, according to data the company shared on June 2. It was the first month that BYD’s new energy vehicle sales topped 110,000.

Editor: Futura Costaglione