XPeng Inc. reported second-quarter revenue of RMB 18.27 billion (about US$2.55 billion), a 125 percent increase from a year earlier and its highest quarterly total to date. Vehicle sales accounted for RMB 16.88 billion as deliveries surged to 103,200 units, roughly 2.4 times the prior-year level. The company’s non-GAAP loss narrowed to RMB 0.20 a share, beating analyst estimates and marking its smallest quarterly deficit in five years. Profitability metrics continued to improve despite a price-competitive Chinese electric-vehicle market. Overall gross margin rose to 17.3 percent from 14.0 percent, while vehicle margin more than doubled to 14.3 percent on stronger product mix and cost efficiencies. Management cautioned that industry-wide price pressure remains intense but said technology investments, including an in-house autonomous-driving chip, are starting to bear fruit. For the third quarter, XPeng projects revenue of RMB 19.6 billion to RMB 21.0 billion, implying year-on-year growth of up to 108 percent. It expects to deliver 113,000 to 118,000 vehicles, an increase of as much as 154 percent. The optimistic outlook lifted the company’s U.S.-listed shares roughly 4 percent in early trading on Tuesday.