BYD denies laying off staff, stock plunges

Gasgoo.com (Shanghai February 28) - BYD stocks took a plunge today as the manufacturer denied news of laying off sales staff. Spokesman Lin Mi said that he was unaware of any such news, although BYD was in the process of doing some internal restructuring. Mr. Lin's comments circulated across Hong Kong newspapers.

The rumors of increased firings originally appeared in several domestic outlets quoting an unnamed sales manager who said that sales staff had been cut by about half. Similar comments were made by a salesperson who had recently attended a company training seminar. He reported that the company's targeted number of sales employees had been reduced from over 300 to only about 100 people.

Meanwhile, the company's stock (01211.HK) took a dive of 11.29 points, with its value going as low as HK$30.65 ($4.684). Previously, the company's values were in constant rise, due to news of upcoming electric vehicles and sales discounts.

BYD only managed to sell 520,000 vehicles last year, a mere increase of 15.5% from 2009 and well short of its 600,000 sales goal. Sales took a further drop this January with only 52,054 BYD vehicles being driven home from the showroom.