Xiaomi Shatters Nürburgring SUV Record But Stock Wobbles Ahead of Earnings and Product Blitz

Xiaomi's YU7 GT sets fastest SUV lap at Nürburgring (7:34.931), but shares fall 25% YTD as smartphone weakness offsets EV gains. New battery subsidiary, buybacks, and Sky Nomad brand emerge.

Xiaomi has clocked the fastest production SUV lap on the Nürburgring’s Nordschleife with its YU7 GT, yet the accolade has done little to lift a share price that has shed nearly a quarter of its value this year. The 7-minute 34.931-second run—beating the Audi RS Q8 Performance’s previous mark of 7:36.698—puts the Chinese group squarely in the spotlight as it prepares two pivotal dates: a product launch on May 21 and quarterly earnings five days later.

The car, powered by dual motors delivering 738 kilowatts (roughly 990 hp) and a top speed around 300 km/h, features carbon-ceramic brakes and chassis tuning by both Chinese and European engineers. Xiaomi’s chief test driver Ren Zhoucan was behind the wheel, a run the company touts as the first Nürburgring record for a Chinese driver. The YU7 GT is expected to go on sale in China at the end of May at a price between 450,000 and 500,000 yuan, positioning it squarely in the high-margin performance segment where brand clout and technological credibility matter more than volume.

Alongside the track triumph, Xiaomi is quietly tightening its grip on key EV components. On May 18 it registered Beijing Xiaomi Jingxu Technology with 10 million RMB in registered capital, a subsidiary tasked with developing and manufacturing batteries, electric motors and electronic control systems. The move dovetails with news that the company is broadening its battery supply chain to include Sunwoda and CALB, reducing reliance on long-time partners CATL and BYD. Vertical integration, while capital-intensive, offers a path to better margins in an auto business that is still scaling.

But the core smartphone operation remains a drag. CLSA, which maintains an “Outperform” rating, slashed its price target from 45 Hong Kong dollars to 41 HKD, citing weaker expectations for the handset division. Analysts forecast first-quarter revenue of 99.4 billion RMB—a 10.7% year-on-year decline—driven largely by a 19% drop in smartphone shipments as Xiaomi prioritises margin protection over volume. In contrast, the EV segment is expected to post a 6% revenue increase with a gross margin of roughly 19.8%. The question is whether automotive growth can eventually offset the drag from mobile.

The market’s scepticism is evident. On Wednesday the stock closed at 3.37 euros in Europe, down 1.56% on the day, bringing its year-to-date loss to 25.02%. The shares now trade roughly 24% below their 200-day moving average. Xiaomi has tried to steady the ship with buybacks: on Tuesday it repurchased 3.3 million class B shares in Hong Kong for about 100 million HKD, following a similar 3.26 million share buyback the previous day. Shareholders will vote on June 2 on a proposal to renew the buyback mandate, which allows the company to repurchase up to 10% of its issued shares.

Beyond the YU7 GT, Xiaomi’s automotive ambition extends to a second brand, Sky Nomad, focused on range-extender SUVs. Its first model, the Kunlun N3, is slated for the second half of 2026 and aims at the premium SUV market with a claimed total range of up to 1,500 kilometres. The group has already delivered over 656,000 EVs through April 2026 and is sticking to its full-year target of 550,000 units—roughly a fifth of which had been delivered by early May.

With the YU7 GT launch and the upcoming SU7 facelift, Xiaomi must now convert attention into deliveries. The May 21 event will also unveil new smartphones, but the real test is whether the combination of record lap times, competitive pricing and expanding production capacity can arrest the stock’s slide. Technical prowess on the track has earned Xiaomi headlines; earning it on the balance sheet is the harder lap ahead.