Tesla Set To Rebound After Reporting 35% Increase In Chinese Sales For March

Shares of Tesla could be due for a respite from yesterday’s selloff today, as news of the company’s deliveries in China rising 19% in March broke overnight. 

According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) on Tuesday, Tesla sold 88,869 units of China-made electric vehicles for the month of March, a 35% increase from a year ago, according to Reuters. 

The figure is also up 19.4% sequentially after Tesla delivered 74,402 vehicles in February. Competitor BYD remains the name to watch in China, however, selling 206,089 vehicles last month.

It marks the “second-highest China-made vehicle sales ever for the company, just behind the 100,291 units that were sold in November of last year,” according to the Teslarati blog. 

Recall we also posted Tesla’s Q1 delivery numbers for the U.S. just days ago. 

Tesla reported Q1 2023 deliveries on Sunday, posting a figure of 422,875 vehicles delivered, beating most current consensus Wall Street estimates. The company delivered 10,695 Model S/X vehicles and 412,180 Model 3/Y vehicles. 

Original analyst expectations were for 430,008 vehicles, according to Refinitiv data cited by Reuters. Multiple outlets reported the number as a miss (it was, compared to original estimates) and a beat (it was, compared to current lower-balled estimates). 

This Q1 figure was a 36% increase year over year and a 4% increase sequentially, compared to the 405,278 deliveries the company posted in Q4 2022. Bulls are likely to see the beat as good news, while bears will likely argue that the “beat” wasn’t enough given the drastic price cuts Tesla has put into place since the end of last year. 

“We continued to transition towards a more even regional mix of vehicle builds, including Model S/X vehicles in transit to EMEA and APAC,” the company’s release said. Despite this mix change, the Model S and Model X are becoming dwindling contributors to Tesla’s delivery bottom line. 

Martin Viecha, Tesla’s head of IR, said Sunday: “Sequential growth continues even in the first quarter.”