Mauro Orru
2 min read
In This Article:
Tesla’s sales in the European Union slumped for a fourth consecutive month as Elon Musk’s electric-vehicle maker struggles to cash in on a growing EV market in the bloc where Chinese rivals are expanding.
New-car registrations for Tesla models, a reflection of sales, plunged nearly 53% to 5,475 vehicles across the EU last month, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, an industry body also known as ACEA. When including the U.K., Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, sales fell 49% to 7,261 vehicles.
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April marks the fourth consecutive month that Tesla’s new-car registrations in the EU contracted from the previous year following slumps of 36% in March, 47% in February and 50% in January.
The declines came even as ACEA data showed that the EV market in the EU has been growing so far this year. Sales of battery-electric vehicles between January and April increased more than 26% on year. Registrations of hybrid-electric cars grew nearly 21%, while plug-in-hybrid models logged 7.8% growth.
Tesla continues to face stiff competition from Chinese rivals that are expanding aggressively in Europe. The company is also grappling with backlash from Chief Executive Elon Musk’s role in the Trump administration. Musk said in April that he was going to spend less time in Washington and more overseeing the company as investors were concerned that he had taken his eye off the ball.
The billionaire wrote in a post on X over the weekend that he had gone back to spending significant time at work and sleeping in conference, server and factory rooms, saying he had to be “super focused” on Tesla and his other companies.
Tesla stock rose 4% Tuesday amid a broad market rally after President Trump said he would delay the introduction of new tariffs on the European Union until July 9.
Chinese automaker BYD sold more electric vehicles in Europe than Tesla for the first time in April, according to data from JATO Dynamics, a consumer-research group. Chinese state-owned automaker SAIC Motor also outsold Tesla in Europe last month, according to ACEA data.
Competitive prices have helped Chinese carmakers gain market share in recent years, prompting several European carmakers to revise their sales and profitability forecasts.
