Xpeng Inc. Co-President Brian Gu said he expects margins to turn positive this quarter, after the Chinese electric-vehicle maker reported a wider-than-expected loss in the three months through September.
Deliveries are forecast to climb to a record this quarter, and the company is continuing efforts to improve profitability with fast growth, technology improvements and new cars with higher margins, Gu said in a Bloomberg Television interview Friday. Last quarter’s negative margin was partly because of accounting in some one-time expenses, he said.
Xpeng’s partnership with Volkswagen AG is going “very well,” Gu added. Apart from two VW-branded models the automakers are working on together, they are in discussions about further collaborations on supply-chain synergies and “international capabilities” that can be leveraged, he said.
Read More: VW and Stellantis Show Script Has Flipped in China: Hyperdrive
The Guangzhou-based EV maker reported a wider-than-expected third-quarter loss this week, and even with the record fourth-quarter deliveries it will ship fewer than 150,000 vehicles for the year. Meanwhile, market leader BYD Co. is targeting sales of 3 million EVs and hybrids in 2023, and rival upstart Li Auto Inc. is on track to deliver more than 372,000 cars.
Gu said Xpeng tends not to give delivery forecasts for the coming year, but he is “confident to grow much faster in the industry in terms of market share.”
--With assistance from Yvonne Man and Rishaad Salamat.
