CHINESE electric vehicle specialist BYD has topped the global EV sales charts - beating Tesla to the number one spot.

BYD, which has just announced it is to open a factory in Hungary, sold more than three million vehicles in 2023.

In December alone it achieved sales of 341,043 units, a 45 per cent increase, culminating in a total of 3,024,417 vehicles sold throughout the year, a 61.9 per cent rise from the previous year.

In 2023, BYD saw exports grow by 334.2 per cent to 242,765 units and it has a presence in more than 70 countries on six continents.

The company started selling electric vehicles in the UK last year with the Atto 3 SUV which it followed in the summer with the Dolphin hatchback and the Seal performance coupe.

Founded in 1995 as a rechargeable battery maker, BYD now has a diverse business scope covering automobiles, rail transit, new energy, and electronics with over 30 industrial parks in China, the United States, Canada, Japan, Brazil and India as well as the new plant in Hungary.