Investing.com-- Chinese electric vehicle (EV) giant BYD Co (HK: 1211 ) said on Tuesday it expects first-quarter net profit to nearly double from a year earlier, driven by record-breaking sales and strong international expansion.

The Shenzhen-based automaker estimated net earnings of between 8.5 billion yuan and 10 billion yuan ($1.17–1.38 billion) for the January–March period, up 86% to 119% from 4.57 billion yuan a year earlier, according to a stock exchange filing.

BYD said the surge was supported by robust demand in the new energy vehicle (NEV) sector, record quarterly sales, and solid overseas performance.

Hong Kong-listed shares of the company jumped 7.2% to HK$337.80 as of 04:35 GMT.

The strong preliminary result comes as U.S. rival Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA ) reported a year-on-year decline in first-quarter deliveries earlier this month, pressured by intensifying competition in China, production slowdowns, and weakening global EV demand.

BYD’s full first-quarter results will be disclosed later this month.