Geely Auto's Revenue Rises but Profit Falls on Currency Effects — Update

By Jiahui Huang

Geely Automobile, China's second-largest electric-vehicle maker, reported a weaker bottom line, but its core profit grew thanks to record sales and higher revenue.

Currency swings dragged net profit 27% lower to 4.17 billion yuan, equivalent to $609.9 million, in the three months ended March, the Hangzhou-based company said Wednesday. Revenue climbed 15% to 83.78 billion yuan.

Core profit--a metric closely watched by analysts--was better than expected, however, climbing 31% from a year earlier to 4.56 billion yuan.

That drove Geely Auto's shares in Hong Kong up about 5% in afternoon trading.

The results stand out at a time when China's auto market, the world's largest, is facing the twin challenges of slowing demand and rising competition, reflecting Geely's ability to sustain both volume growth and profitability. That contrasts with industry leader BYD, which saw its first-quarter net profit drop 55% amid weaker revenue and margins.

Geely Automobile sold 709,358 vehicles in the first three months of the year, a record for the first quarter. Sales of new-energy vehicle sales--a term that encompasses battery EVs and plug-in hybrids--climbed 9% to 369,059 units.

The sales confirm the successful structural transformation and competitive strength of the listed Chinese arm of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, which owns controlling stakes in brands such as Volvo and Polestar.

With EVs now making up more than half of sales volume and robust overseas sales, Geely Auto appears to be going from strength to strength. Its luxury EV brand, Zeekr, has been in the spotlight recently, thanks to its strong margins and 86% sales jump in the first quarter.

The automaker has also entered major European markets, including the U.K., Italy and Poland, as well as South America. Its chief executive said at an event in January that it aimed to sell 640,000 ​cars ​overseas in 2026--roughly ⁠50% ​more than ​last year.

Geely is eager to expand in America--the world's second-largest vehicle market--as its overseas business grows, but it faces major hurdles. Discussions involving Ford Motor potentially licensing Geely's technology in the U.S. have stalled in recent months, The Wall Street Journal reported last week. Instead, the two are focused on hammering out a deal to share technology and manufacturing capacity in Europe, according to the Journal.

Write to Jiahui Huang at jiahui.huang@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 29, 2026 02:09 ET (06:09 GMT)