Xiaomi's MIX 5 Myth Busted as Buybacks and EV Targets Take Centre Stage

Xiaomi MIX 5 speculation ends; focus shifts to 26% stock drop, record buybacks, and a 550,000 EV delivery goal that looks out of reach.

A flurry of speculation around a new Xiaomi MIX 5 smartphone has been firmly put to rest by a trusted industry insider, redirecting attention to the company's more pressing challenges: a struggling share price, a massive share buyback programme, and an electric vehicle delivery target that looks increasingly out of reach.

Digital Chat Station, a Chinese leaker with a strong track record on unreleased Xiaomi hardware, has clarified that the model number "Q5" and the codename "Hongkong" — which had fuelled MIX 5 rumours — actually belong to the upcoming Xiaomi 18 series. The confusion stemmed from an analysis of Xiaomi's internal Mi-Code database, where the "Q" prefix denotes 2026 development cycles and the "5" evoked earlier MIX models. The conclusion, however logical, was incorrect.

The technologies that made the MIX 5 rumour compelling are not being scrapped. An under-display camera, a magnetic lens accessory system, and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro chip are all expected to feature in the Xiaomi 18 Ultra, which is slated for a Chinese launch in the fourth quarter of 2026. Separate leaks suggest the Xiaomi 18 Pro line could pack dual 200-megapixel cameras, a roughly 7,000mAh battery, and a 2nm processor.

The MIX brand itself is not dead — it lives on in the foldable segment. The upcoming MIX Fold 5 is expected to carry Xiaomi's in-house Xring-O3 chip. But a conventional, non-folding MIX smartphone is off the table for 2026.

Buybacks Accelerate as Stock Sinks

While product rumours have been put to bed, the financial picture is far from settled. Xiaomi's board will review first-quarter results on 26 May, and the market is bracing for a tough read. Citi analyst Kyna Wong forecasts revenue of roughly 97 billion yuan — a 17% sequential decline and a 13% drop year-on-year. The smartphone division is grappling with rising memory costs, while the EV business is being squeezed by subsidies and ramp-up expenses.

The stock has lost around 25% since the start of the year and now trades roughly 27% below its 200-day moving average. At current levels of around 3.40 euros, the company has been aggressively buying back its own shares. By the end of April, Xiaomi had repurchased 7.4 billion Hong Kong dollars worth of equity — more than in the whole of the previous year. In the final trading days alone, roughly 200 million Hong Kong dollars flowed into buybacks.

EV Delivery Target Looks Steep

There was some good news from the electric vehicle division. Xiaomi EV delivered more than 30,000 vehicles in April, up from 21,440 units in March. But the cumulative total for the first four months of 2026 stands at roughly 109,000 vehicles — well short of the pace needed to hit the full-year target of 550,000 units, a 34% increase on 2025.

To reach that goal, Xiaomi would need to deliver more than 55,000 vehicles every month from May through December. The company has never achieved that figure in a single month. Whether the 26 May earnings call provides enough clarity on EV cost structure to trigger a re-rating remains the key question for investors.