BYD Auto, China’s electric vehicle (EV) king, was the world’s biggest seller of pure electric cars in the fourth quarter of 2024, as Tesla’s sales for the period fell short of expectations. In the fourth quarter, BYD delivered 595,412 battery electric vehicles (BEVs) to customers, up 13.1 percent from a year earlier. For the first time ever, Tesla, viewed as an assembler of premium electric cars, reported an annual decline in deliveries.