BYD enters North Macedonia, its 38th European market
BYD has opened its first showroom in Skopje through importer Evolution-Auto, with seven EV and plug-in hybrid models. The Chinese carmaker has gone from 29 to 38 European markets in less than a year.
BYD has officially entered North Macedonia, which it calls its 38th European market. The importer is Evolution-Auto, and the first sales point is a pop-up showroom in a shopping centre in central Skopje.
What it's bringing
The official launch took place on September 30, with the showroom opening right after. BYD starts with seven models, split between EVs and plug-in hybrids:
- electric: Dolphin Surf, Atto 3 Evo, the Seal saloon and the Sealion 7 SUV;
- plug-in hybrid (DM-i): Atto 2 DM-i, Seal U DM-i and Seal 6 DM-i.
It's a small market: just 497 new cars were registered in the whole country in August. Tellingly, the month's best-seller was already a BYD, the Atto 2, before the official launch.
Nine new markets in under a year
Last November, BYD said it was present in 29 European markets. Now it's 38. Known 2026 entries include Slovenia, Montenegro and Bulgaria (all in March), with Andorra next. The Balkans are turning into BYD territory one country at a time.
The expansion shows in the numbers. According to ACEA, BYD registered 234,099 cars across the EU, EFTA and the UK in the first eight months of 2026, up 144% year on year. Its share rose from 1.1% to 2.5%. A large part of that volume is plug-in hybrids, though, which pay only the standard 10% EU import duty rather than the extra tariff on China-built EVs.
The Hungarian plant is running late
BYD's answer to tariffs is local production, but its plant in Szeged, Hungary, is behind schedule. Trial production began on January 29 and series assembly is due in the fourth quarter, about a year later than first planned. A plant announced for Turkey is on hold.
For context, see BYD's September results, when exports jumped 154%.
