In this article, we will be taking a look at the 15 biggest Asian car companies by sales.
Global Automotive Market: Growth Trends and Projections (2023-2030)
The global passenger car market was valued at around $1.66 trillion in 2022, with an expected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.1% from 2023 to 2030, reaching $2.67 trillion by 2030. The United States is one of the largest automotive markets globally. In 2023, around 15.5 million new light vehicles were sold in the US. Additionally, the used car market in the US is substantial, with an estimated 40 million used vehicles sold annually. Regarding vehicle ownership, nearly 92% of households in the US owned at least one vehicle in 2022, with an average of 1.9 vehicles per household.
The United States is one of the largest automotive markets in the world. As of 2022, there were approximately 278,870,463 vehicles registered in the US. The global automotive industry was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with sales plummeting in 2020. However, the market has shown signs of recovery. In 2023, global new car sales grew by almost 10% after remaining stable in 2022. The US car market experienced robust growth, with sales increasing by over 14% in 2023. China’s car market stalled in the first three quarters of 2023 but still grew by 4.5% for the full year.
Global car sales are projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 2.7% between 2023 and 2030, reaching 88.3 million annual vehicle shipments by 2030. In 2024, global car sales are expected to reach around 76.1 million units. Talking about vehicles, the electric vehicle market is also prospering with the global sales of electric vehicles projected to reach $951.9 billion by 2030, rising at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.7%, from a value of $388.1 billion in 2023, according to a report by Markets and Markets.
Biggest Players in the Automotive Industry
When it comes to the automotive industry, companies like Tesla, Toyota, Honda, Mercedez, and Ford Motors, among others. Tesla’s most significant contribution has been its role in popularizing electric vehicles (EVs) on a global scale. Through its Gigafactories, Tesla has made significant advancements in lithium-ion battery production, increasing energy density and reducing costs. In Q1 2024, Their revenue was $21.3 billion, a 9% decrease year-over-year, missing estimates of $22.34 billion. Their automotive revenue declined 13% year-over-year to $17.38 billion due to lower vehicle deliveries and pricing adjustments.
Similarly, Ford is one of the world’s largest and most influential automotive companies. In the 2024 election cycle, the company and its employees contributed $273,497 to political campaigns, with individuals accounting for 100% of the contributions. Additionally, Ford spent $1,420,354 on lobbying efforts in 2024, demonstrating its active engagement in shaping policies that impact the automotive sector. In 2022, the Ford Motor Company Fund donated $10,000 to charities chosen by the honorees, further amplifying the company’s philanthropic impact. In Q1 2024, their revenue was $42.8 billion, up 3% year-over-year despite slightly lower vehicle shipments.
Honda also never fails to impress us with its amazing contributions to the automotive industry. The company currently operates 9 manufacturing plants in the United States, producing a diverse range of Honda and Acura automobiles, engines, transmissions, power equipment, and Powersports products. The company is making efforts to establish a global BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) production system, to achieve 100% EV and FCV (Fuel Cell Vehicle) sales by 2040. In Q1 2024 operating profit grew 172.2 billion yen year-over-year to 394.4 billion yen, a quarterly record with an 8.5% operating margin.
A worker in a factory using a robotic arm to assemble automotive body panels.
Our Methodology
For our methodology, we have ranked the biggest Asian car companies by sales based on the total vehicles these brands sold in 2023. In addition to covering the largest industries in the world, at Insider Monkey we mostly focus on corporate insiders and hedge funds. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
Here is our list of the 15 biggest Asian car companies by sales.
15. Mazda Motor
Total Units Sold in 2023: 58,637
Mazda Motor Corporation is a prominent Japanese automaker and one of the largest car companies in Asia by sales volume. Mazda has manufacturing plants in Japan, Mexico, China, Thailand, and Vietnam and employs over 50,000 people worldwide. Some of its popular models include Mazda 3 and 6, CX-5, with 20,434 units sold in the U.S. in December 2023, CX-30, with around 5,672 units sold and CX-30 with around 5,754 units sold during the same period. In Q1, 2024 the company reported a Global sales volume of 289,000 units, down 2% year-over-year.
14. Tata Motors
Total Units Sold in 2023:
Tata Motors is an Indian multinational automotive company headquartered in Mumbai. It is the third-largest passenger vehicle brand in India. In the fiscal year 2023 (TTM), Tata Motors reported a revenue of $52.43 billion, a significant increase from $25.17 billion in 2018. In Q1 2024, their consolidated revenue was Rs 102,236 crore ($12,249,580,140 USD.), up 42.1% year-over-year.
13. Subaru
Total Units Sold in 2023: 632,086
Subaru is one of the largest Asian car companies by sales, with global sales reaching 632,086 vehicles. In the United States, Subaru of America (SOA) has seen steady growth over the years. In 2022, SOA recorded sales of 180,020 units and revenue of $4.1 billion. The company’s operating profit per vehicle sold was the highest among Japanese automakers in the fiscal year ending March 2023, reaching about 314,000 yen ($2,260) per vehicle, surpassing even Toyota Motor. Their global production increased 18.3% to 243,000 units in Q1 2024, despite continued production constraints due to the semiconductor shortage.
12. Isuzu Motor
Total Units Sold in 2023: 771,000
Isuzu Motors Ltd. is one of the largest commercial vehicle manufacturers in Asia. As of March 2023, Isuzu’s revenue in Japanese Yen (TTM) was 3.39 trillion, with a net income of 185.32 billion Yen.
11. Mitsubishi Motors
Total Units Sold in 2023: 1,024,010
Mitsubishi Motors stand eleventh among the biggest Asian car companies by sales. Mitsubishi’s most popular models in China include the Outlander compact SUV and the ASX subcompact SUV. The company has faced challenges in the Chinese market in recent years, with sales declining from 158,406 units in 2019 to just 35,299 units in 2022. The company sold more than 1 million vehicles in 2023.
10. Great Wall Motor
Total Units Sold in 2023: 1,230,000
Great Wall Motor is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in Asia. In 2022, the company sold over 1.06 million vehicles globally, with 90% of sales occurring in China. In 2022, Great Wall Motor invested CNY 12.18 billion (approximately $1.8 billion) in R&D, a 34% increase from the previous year. In the first quarter of 2024, Great Wall Motor reported sales of CNY 42,859.77 million (approximately $6.2 billion), up from CNY 29,038.53 million (approximately $4.2 billion) in the same period of the previous year.
9. BAIC Motor
Total Units Sold in 2023: 1,700,000
BAIC Motor is one of the best Asian car manufacturers. BAIC’s most popular models include Arcfox (30,016 units of this model in 2023) and Foton (821,033 units of this model in 2023). In 2023 the company sold 1.7 million vehicles globally. BAIC Motor also stand among the top 10 Chinese car brands.
8. Suzuki Motor
Total Units Sold in 2023: 1,910,000
Suzuki Motor ranks eighth among the biggest Asian car companies by sales. The company employs over 70,000 people worldwide and operates 35 manufacturing plants in 23 countries. Some of Suzuki’s most popular models in 2023 include the Alto series (16.01 million units sold), the WagonR series (9.50 million units sold), and the Swift series (8.95 million units sold). Net sales were 366,975 million INR, up 19.1% compared to Q1 FY2023.
7. KIA
Total Units Sold in 2023: 3,085,771
In 2023, Kia recorded global sales of 3.08 million vehicles. The company’s revenue reached an all-time high of 99.8 trillion won in 2023 (approximately USD 75 billion), a 15.3% increase from the previous year. Kia posted Q1 2024 global sales of 760,515 units, a 1% decrease year-over-year. Their Q1 revenue increased 10.6% to KRW 26.21 trillion.
6. Nissan Motor
Total Units Sold in 2023: 3,440,000
Nissan’s average transaction price in the U.S. dropped by 4% to $36,597, and the company increased incentives by 94% to an average of $2,823 per vehicle. In Japan, Nissan’s sales rose by 6.1% to 454 thousand vehicles in 2022, while in China, sales fell by 24.3% to 1.045 million vehicles. In Europe, Nissan’s sales declined by 9.2% to 308 thousand vehicles. Nissan aims to launch 30 new models, 16 of which will be electric, and refresh 60% of its gas-powered vehicles by fiscal year 2026.
