Xiaomi’s newly-launched YU7 reportedly being swiped by scalpers

Scalpers are swiftly capitalizing on the high demand for Xiaomi’s newly-launched YU7 crossover in China, listing early reservations at exorbitant prices immediately after sales began for the smartphone maker’s second electric vehicle model on June 26. Xiaomi asks customers who decide to order a YU7 to put down a RMB 5,000 ($698) refundable deposit, and within minutes of the launch, Chinese resale platform Xianyu featured Xiaomi YU7 orders priced as high as RMB 20,000, local media outlet The Paper reported. The news comes as the consumer electronics giant announced it had received more than 289,000 reservations in just one hour for its first sports utility vehicle, and that more than 240,000 of those reservations converted into full sales within 18 hours. Waiting times for the entry-level YU7 and the top-end YU7 Max are at least 57 weeks and 37 weeks, respectively, according to TechNode’s observations on the Xiaomi Auto app on Monday. [TechNode reporting, The Paper, in Chinese]