Tesla shares ultimately rises: Tesla with record figures in China

For electric carmaker Tesla, business in China was apparently outstanding in December.

According to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), U.S.-based Tesla sold 70,847 vehicles manufactured in China in December – more than ever before in a month since production started at the Shanghai plant in 2019.

Sales tripled

Compared to December 2020, Tesla was thus able to triple its sales figures in China, and there was also a strong increase of 34 percent compared to the previous month of November.

According to calculations by Reuters, the electric carmaker is likely to have sold at least 473,078 vehicles in China alone in the year as a whole – which would mean that around half of the total number of EVs produced by the group would be sold in the region.

Tesla’s China plant is where the Model 3 mass-market vehicle and the Model Y come off the production line. The automaker also produces vehicles for export in the country. Tu Le, managing director of Sino Auto Insights in Beijing, told Reuters that the December figures showed that the Tesla brand remained strong in China and was also “impressive” operationally, with the Shanghai factory having a capacity of about 42,000 vehicles per month on average. “In December, they were well above that number. And that’s despite the chip and battery shortages that other electric vehicle manufacturers have faced.”

Strong competition in China

In China, the US company is facing strong competition. In addition to BYD, which has a financially strong investor on board in the form of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, NIO, Xpeng, and Li Auto are also vying for electric car customers in the region. German automaker Volkswagen is also getting involved in the scramble for Chinese EV customers.

Tesla shares ended Tuesday’s trading on the NASDAQ 0.59 percent higher at $1,064.40. Tesla shares have gained about one-third in the past three months. In Wednesday trading, it was last up 3.93 percent at $1,106.60.