Shares of Chinese EV maker BYD bounce after exec says firm is about to produce batteries to Tesla

Shares of electrical car maker BYD jumped on Wednesday after a senior government mentioned throughout an interview with Chinese state media that the corporate is about to produce batteries to Tesla “very soon.”

“We’re now good friends also with Elon Musk, because we’re preparing to supply batteries to [Tesla] very soon,” BYD Vice President Lian Yubo mentioned throughout an interview with Chinese state media anchor Kate Kui.

BYD and Tesla didn’t instantly reply to CNBC’s requests for remark.

Rechargeable batteries and photovoltaic (the conversion of sunshine from the solar to electrical energy) made up 7.29% of BYD’s income pool in 2021, dwarfed by the greater than 50% share taken up by cars and associated merchandise, in response to the corporate’s newest annual report.

Hong Kong-listed shares of BYD jumped 2.79% on Wednesday, mirroring broader optimistic sentiment in tech because the Hang Seng Tech index superior 4.76% to 4,818.36. Shares of different Chinese EV makers in Hong Kong additionally rose, with Nio up 5.07% whereas Xpeng surged 6.13%.

Mainland-listed shares of Chinese battery maker and Tesla provider Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) plunged greater than 7% throughout Wednesday buying and selling earlier than bouncing again to shut 0.218% larger. CATL had roughly 25% of world EV battery market share in 2020, far forward of BYD’s 7%, in response to Nomura analysis.

Elsewhere in Asia, shares of Panasonic in Japan dipped 0.78% whereas South Korea’s LG Energy Solution dropped 1.5%. Both firms additionally provide batteries to Tesla.

— CNBC’s Evelyn Cheng contributed to this report.