Tesla experienced its first drop in vehicle deliveries in almost four years, failing to meet Wall Street’s expectations. This indicates that the impact of price reductions is diminishing as car manufacturers face tougher competition and subdued demand.
Since the start of the year, Tesla’s shares have plummeted by nearly 30% and were down 5.7% in early trading on Tuesday.
The world’s most valuable automaker delivered approximately 386,810 vehicles in the first quarter of the year, a 20.2% decrease from the previous quarter, while producing 433,371 vehicles. Wall Street analysts, surveyed by Visible Alpha, had anticipated Tesla to deliver 454,200 vehicles on average.
Compared to the previous year, deliveries from electric vehicle manufacturers dropped by 8.5%. The last time Tesla encountered a decline in sales was in the second quarter of 2020, when the pandemic caused production halts.
The company attributed the decrease in production to preparations for scaling up production of the new Model 3 at its Fremont, Calif., plant, and disruptions at its Berlin plant due to transportation diversions amid the Red Sea conflict and an arson fire. This led to a temporary halt in early March. A left-wing group claimed responsibility for setting fire to a pylon at a German factory that churns out 500,000 cars annually.
In China, Tesla faces tough competition from local companies like BYD, which overtook the American company as the largest EV maker in the last quarter, and newcomer Xiaomi.
Despite this competition, Elon Musk’s company managed to outsell BYD in the quarter, delivering 369,783 Model 3s and Model Ys, along with around 17,000 other models including the Model S sedan, Cybertruck, and Model X premium SUV.
In January, Tesla also cautioned that sales growth would be “significantly slower” this year as it shifts its focus towards producing next-generation electric vehicles.
Source: www.theguardian.com
