Tesla China Sales Fall 31% Sequentially As BYD Continues Growth

Tesla sold 64,285 China-made electric vehicles for the month of July, down 31% from the month prior, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association, reported by Reuters. 

The number is the lowest Tesla has posted so far this year in China. 

Sequentially, the numbers were lower but year-over-year, thanks to the benefit of a 2022 Shanghai shutdown for production line improvements, sales of the Model Y and Model 3 were actually up 128%.

One of Tesla’s largest competitors in China, BYD, posted 261,105 EV sales in July, up 61% year over year without the benefit of an abnormally easy 2022 comp. As Bloomberg notes, BYD has now surpassed Tesla in global EV sales, effective last year. 

Last year BYD sold 1.85 million electric vehicles, up exponentially from the 200,000 the automaker sold in 2019. The chart above shows just how quickly BYD sales have surpassed Tesla. 

Some Twitter/X users have asked questions about whether demand in China could be drying up, posting that the company was offering a referral program for Model 3 sales for the month of August.

Tesla MIC offering RMB 3.5K-7K referral program until 31 Aug.
(agency news) pic.twitter.com/v1nloUoXDl

— Moneyball (@MoneybaII_R) August 2, 2023

The dropoff in July will have Wall Street watching Tesla’s China numbers closer heading into Q3. June looked like it held more promise for Tesla, with the automaker posting 74,212 vehicles sold and 19,468 units exported, solidifying a 20.6% sequential rise for the EV maker.

At the end of Q2 Tesla posted 466,140 deliveries for the quarter, ahead of Bloomberg’s consensus estimate of 448,351. The auto manufacturer produced 479,700 vehicles in the quarter, exceeding estimates of 456,617.