BYD posts 31.37% YoY decline in 2018 net profits

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Chinese automaker BYD announced that its gross revenues in 2018 jumped 22.79% year on year to RMB130.055 billion, the sixth consecutive yearly increase. However, its net profits attributable to shareholders of listed company only reached RMB2.791 billion, significantly dropping 31.37% from a year ago. 

The automaker said the full-year performance is in line with its previous forecast of a year-on-year decline of 23.10% to 32.94% in 2018 net profits.

BYD faced negative growth in net profits in the second year in a row. In 2017, its net profits attributable to shareholders slid 19.7% to RMB4.066 billion.

The company ascribed its profit decrease to four major reasons as below:

1) The fierce competition caused by the overall industrial downturn somewhat affected its profitability in fuel-burning vehicle business despite the general stable development in this sector, thus brought pressure on company's profitability.

2) The orders and profits of mobile phone parts and assembly businesses were somewhat struck by the weakened industrial demand and intensifying market competition.

3) Influenced by policy fluctuation and impairment losses on assets, the photovoltaic business faced a widened annual loss.

4) The increase of financial expense caused by the rising funding cost also impacted BYD's overall profitability to some degree.