China News Service, March 23 (China News reporter Ge Cheng) As Xpeng Motors recently released its annual report, the 2023 annual reports of the three leading new car-making forces "Wei Xiaoli" (Nio, Xiaopeng, and Ideal) have been released. All out.
Financial reports show that in the past year, the performance of the three car companies in terms of net profit was very different. Among them, the best performer is Li Auto, with net profit exceeding 10 billion; Weilai and Xiaopeng can be called "suffering brothers", with their total losses exceeding 30 billion.
In 2024, the elimination of the auto market may further accelerate. In the brutal competition, new car companies that have not yet made profits will face greater pressure. The performance of new power automobile companies has become an important window for the outside world to observe the changes in the pattern of China's new energy automobile industry.
Data map: Xpeng Motors City Showroom. Photo by Ge Cheng of China New Finance
Making tens of billions and losing 20 billion
Profit performance is as good as ice and fire
From the perspective of making money, Li Auto will undoubtedly be the winner in 2023. Not only did it achieve a full-year profit for the first time, its net profit was as high as 11.81 billion yuan. After the magnificent turnaround, Li Auto became the third new energy vehicle company in the world to achieve full-year profits after Tesla and BYD.
In contrast, NIO and Xpeng's losses continued to expand. Among them, Weilai's full-year net loss reached 20.72 billion yuan, a loss range that expanded by 45% year-on-year; Xiaopeng's full-year net loss reached 10.38 billion yuan, a loss range that expanded by 13.6% year-on-year.
In terms of sales, Li Auto has also distanced itself from Xpeng and NIO. The financial report shows that in 2023, Li Auto will deliver 376,000 vehicles throughout the year, NIO will deliver 160,000 vehicles throughout the year, and Xpeng Motors will deliver 141,600 vehicles throughout the year. This means that the combined annual delivery volume of Xpeng and NIO is not as high as that of Li Auto.
Regarding last year's profit and sales performance, the attitudes of the heads of the three car companies are different.
He Xiaopeng, chairman and CEO of Xpeng Motors, said, "Xpeng Motors must pursue quality development first, and then pursue scale." NIO CEO Li Bin focused on car owners, "If users don't support it, it's meaningless for us to live. , if users support us, we will live a long life." Li Xiang, CEO of Li Auto, said, "In 2024, we will challenge the annual delivery target of 800,000 vehicles."
Data map: Ideal Car City Showroom. Photo by Ge Cheng of China New Finance
Ideal new car caught in styling controversy
Weilai and Xiaopeng will use new brands to "turn over"
From the perspective of profits and sales, although Li Auto is currently leading the way, it is far from the time to relax.
In March this year, Li Auto ran into some trouble. First, the new car MEGA it released caused controversy because the product picture was photoshopped, causing a large number of users to unsubscribe; subsequently, Li Auto's stock price fell.
On March 21, Li Xiang issued an internal letter to all employees, in which he reviewed the problems that Li Auto had in March and proposed solutions. Li Xiang said that Ideal MEGA had a rhythm problem and mistakenly regarded Ideal MEGA’s stage from 0 to 1 (commercial verification period) as stage 1 to 10 (rapid development period).
While Li Auto's new cars are experiencing turmoil, NIO and Xiaopeng are speeding up their efforts to "turn around" with new brands.
Regarding NIO's new brand, Li Bin said that it will release the second brand in the second quarter of this year, the first car in the third quarter, and start vehicle delivery in the fourth quarter. According to him, the first car of the second brand is being tested. This car will directly compete with Model Y. At present, the cost will be about 10% lower than Tesla, which also gives Weilai a good pricing space. .
Regarding Xpeng Motors, He Xiaopeng said that it will officially launch a new brand at the Beijing Auto Show in April and officially enter the car market in the range of 100,000-150,000 yuan. The first model will be launched and delivered in the third quarter of this year. At the same time, He Xiaopeng said that Xpeng Motors will soon start a strong product cycle. More than ten new models will be launched in the next three years.
Data map: NIO City Showroom. Photo by Ge Cheng of China New Finance
The “price war” is coming as expected
How to deal with "Wei Xiaoli"
The "price war" in the auto market will become more intense in 2024, and the models covered will also spread from new energy vehicles to fuel vehicles. Some models even have a "one price a day" phenomenon. Under the attack of independent brands and joint venture brands, the space for new forces to dodge and maneuver has become increasingly restricted.
Some people in the industry believe that, unlike last year, the knockout competition caused by the "price war" in the auto market this year will be further accelerated, which can be described as "a matter of life and death." Predictions show that the top ten car companies in terms of sales this year will occupy close to 85% of the market share. In the next few years, 80% of the brands may be shut down and transferred (shutdown, suspension, merger, conversion).
"I think price wars are a very normal thing and a normal business process." In Li Bin's view, China's automobile industry has reached the "oil-to-electricity handover stage." Price wars will eventually return to the essence of business, which is value creation.
In He Xiaopeng's view, this phenomenon will be seen in the early and middle stages of all market competitions. The competition brought about by the "price war" will eventually lead to technological innovation, and will also bring benefits to ordinary people when buying cars, and ultimately lead to greater development of the entire industry.
Although Li Xiang has not directly talked about the "price war" issue recently, he said in a letter to all employees that Li Auto focuses too much on sales and competition from top to bottom, allowing desire to surpass value.
In 2024, in the context of fierce competition, "Wei Xiaoli", who has been regarded as a representative of new car-making forces since his birth, is doing his best to cope with this double test of share and profit. The outside world is waiting to see whether the new car-making forces can "go further." (over)