Surging oil prices are prompting Chinese buyers to shift to battery electric vehicles (BEVs), which dominated April sales rankings by taking nine out of the top 10 spots – a new high in China’s electrification drive.

Only one petrol car model was among the bestsellers across all power trains, with Geely’s Binyue in eighth place on sales of 14,923 units, according to data from automotive platform Dongchedi. The rest were BEVs, which produce zero tailpipe emissions.

Geely’s Xingyuan – a battery electric subcompact hatchback priced as low as 57,800 yuan (US$8,520) – regained the crown in April with 34,727 vehicles sold, up 12 per cent from a month earlier.

Xiaomi’s new SU7, priced between nearly 220,000 yuan and 303,900 yuan, vaulted 61 places to second with 26,826 units sold, after deliveries began in late March.

The rise of Geely and Xiaomi pushed Tesla’s Model Y – priced from 263,500 yuan – from first in March to third last month, with sales plunging 42 per cent month on month to 22,990 units.