Car and City: July 2021 registrations of Li ONE

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- In July, Li Auto ranked highest among Chinese NEV startups with its car insurance registrations reaching 8,843 units, according to the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC). Among car brands in China, Li Auto ranked eighth in terms of July registrations of locally-made vehicles, immediately following Tesla (8,998 units).

The startup made such prominent performance with only one model, the Li ONE, for sale. In July, the monthly registrations of the Li ONE grew to a highest-ever level, surging 251.3% year on year, also rising 12.7% month on month.

Li ONE; photo credit: Li Auto

Notably, Li ONE were the runner-up among locally-built NEV models in China by July registrations, but it was still much overshadowed by the champion, the Wuling Hongguang MINIEV, whose registrations stood at up to 30,204 units.

Regarding the contribution of cities, Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Shenzhen all recorded the Li ONE registrations topping 600 units in July. Meanwhile, the Li ONE insurance registrations stood between 400 and 500 units in these four cities, namely, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Beijing, and Chongqing.

The top 10 cities by July registrations of the Li ONE were either provincial capital cities or the traditional first-tier cities, including Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou. Consumers in those regions usually learn and accept fresh things quickly and have greater purchasing power. Thus, it is not hard to understand why startups, who focus on mid-/high-end products, incline to deploy businesses in first- and second-tier cities in priority.