Chinese automobile and battery maker BYD reported an 89% decline in profits and 11% fall in revenue year-on-year in the first half of 2011, the Wall Street Journal reported. The weak performance was in line with the market’s expectations for BYD, given increased competition at the low end of the Chinese car market where BYD sells its vehicles. BYD’s car sales by volume were down 23% in the first half of the year, at 220,131 units. The company has forecast January through September sales at between US$19 million and $57 million, compared with US$380 million during the same period last year. BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu said in a written statement that he expects growth in Chinese car sales will remain slow in the second half, citing weak consumer confidence and rising inflation rates in China and continuing economic uncertainty in Western markets.