China’s top maker of electric vehicles wants to pay a lot less for car parts in the new year, a demand that signals there is no end in sight to a vicious price war nor economic gloom marked by lower wages and uncertain prospects. BYD, Tesla’s main rival, asked a supplier to cut its prices by 10% next year, in widely circulated screenshots of a letter dated Tuesday and signed by He Zhiqi, an executive vice president at the Shenzhen-based company.
“Market leaders willing to sacrifice margins in order to gain share in the race to an electric future,” said Bill Russo, founder of Shanghai-based consultancy Automobility. “BYD has been most aggressive as they seek to leverage their vertically integrated supply chain and cost advantage to lock in their dominance in the market. Others will try to keep pace.