The China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) data released on Tuesday (March 4) showed that American car manufacturer Tesla sold 30,688 electric vehicles in China in February, marking a 49.2% year-on-year decrease, the lowest since August 2022.
The delivery volume of China-produced Model 3 and Model Y decreased by 51.5% compared to the previous month.
On the other hand, Chinese competitor BYD’s Dynasty and Ocean series electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid cars recorded a 161.4% increase in passenger car sales last month, totaling 318,233 vehicles.
Earlier on February 5, Tesla in China had launched a discount policy for purchasing Model 3, offering a limited-time insurance subsidy of 8,000 yuan and a 5-year interest-free policy. Following this price reduction, the price of Model 3 reached an all-time low. This was the first time Tesla had extended the insurance subsidy to cover all models of Model 3, including the high-performance version.
Currently, the Chinese electric vehicle market is facing fierce competition and overcapacity. In order to survive, the entire industry is pushing prices down, with leading manufacturers reducing prices a month earlier compared to the previous round of discounts. Data shows that in the first 11 months of 2024, there were 195 car models that saw price reductions, leading to a year-on-year decline in profits for the automotive industry.
(Reference: Reuters)