Tesla’s global deliveries dropped for the first time in ten years, with the US electric car pioneer posting 1.79 million sales in 2024 — a 1.1 per cent dip on the 1.81 million recorded in 2023 and below Wall Street’s expectations.
Shares in the company fell 6 per cent on Thursday, wiping more than $80 billion from its market value.
The setback comes despite the stock having risen by over 50 per cent in the past 12 months, buoyed by Elon Musk’s rapport with incoming US President Donald Trump and hopes that federal regulations on self-driving vehicles will be relaxed. Tesla had once forecast annual growth of 50 per cent but now faces fierce competition from Chinese manufacturers, particularly BYD, which is edging closer to Tesla’s crown as the world’s top electric vehicle maker.
BYD announced total sales of 1.76 million electric vehicles for 2024, boosted by a December record of 207,734 deliveries, helped by discounts and government subsidies in its domestic market. China accounts for 90 per cent of BYD’s sales, but overseas expansion remains challenging as the EU and the US impose tariffs on imports.
Despite the dip, Daniel Ives, an analyst at Wedbush, maintains that Tesla stock remains a strong choice, viewing the company as “a leading disruptive technology global player” rather than merely a carmaker. However, William Stein at Truist Securities struck a cautionary note, arguing that Tesla may resort to further discounting to lift sales and that such moves could undermine its financial results, due at the end of the month.
Almost all of Tesla’s 2024 sales came from the smaller, cheaper Model 3 and Model Y lines, while the more expensive X, S and the newly launched Cybertruck accounted for a fraction of overall deliveries. The Cybertruck itself hit headlines this week after one exploded outside a Trump hotel in Las Vegas, killing the driver. Musk insisted that “very large fireworks and/or a bomb” in the vehicle’s bed was the cause, rather than any design fault.
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Tesla sees first annual sales decline in a decade as Chinese rivals close in