©Reuters.
Investing.com – Shares of Tesla (NASDAQ:) fell in pre-market trading in the United States after the electric vehicle (EV) giant said shipments of its cars made in China had fallen to a 14-month low in February.
Electric vehicle deliveries made at Tesla’s Shanghai plant fell 19% year-on-year to 60,365, the lowest level since December 2022, likely due to disruptions caused by the Lunar New Year holiday.
The decline came as the company is engaged in a bitter price war with its Chinese peers to capture the world’s largest electric vehicle market. Last week, Tesla introduced new incentives worth just under $5,000 in a bid to entice Chinese customers to buy its Model Y and Model 3 cars.
Weakening demand also raises the prospect of further price cuts in the country, a trend that bodes well for all EV makers in China as it has dented profit margins.
Shares of Chinese electric vehicle makers, including BYD (SZ:) (HK:), Nio (HK:), Xpeng (HK:) e Li Auto (NASDAQ:) (HK:), also fell in Hong Kong trading on Tuesday.
BYD had overtaken Tesla as the best-selling electric vehicle maker in December, with the company appearing to have a much stronger sales presence in its home market. The company’s February sales fell 37%, but remained well ahead of Tesla in terms of overall volume.
Ambar Warrick contributed to this report.