Chinese automaker BYD Co Ltd, backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc on Sunday predicted an up to 91% profit increase in the first nine months of the year, as government policies drive green car sales.
The Shenzhen-based company forecast an 83% to 91% rise in net profit for the first nine months, between 3.6 billion yuan ($539.8 million) to 3.7 billion yuan, according to a stock exchange filing, Reuters reported.
For the first half of 2016, BYD reported 2.3 billion yuan in profit, a 384% increase year-on-year, on the low end of the company›s predicted increase of 382% to 425%.
BYD, which focuses on making green energy cars and batteries for personal electronics, had reported successive quarters of triple-digit growth since third quarter 2015 after years of favorable government policies finally sparked a boom in sales of full electric cars and plug-in hybrids.
Berkshire Hathaway›s stake in BYD fell to 8.25% from 9.1% previously after a share sale in July in which South Korea›s Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and other investors bought a stake in the Chinese automaker.
BYD’s board recommended an interim cash dividend of 0.367 yuan per share, according to the filing.
