Tesla's new-car registrations in China soared last week compared to the week prior, according to data released Tuesday. The bounce in vehicle registrations comes amid fears Tesla vehicle demand in China may face rising resistance from domestic competition and a weakening economy. Tesla stock rose Tuesday.
Registrations of Tesla vehicles in China last week increased 46% vs the week prior to 23,109, according to the China Passenger Car Association. Tesla registrations for Sept. 19-Sept. 25 is also up 27% compared to the first week of September. So far in the month, there have been 57,180 Tesla insurance registrations. This is leading some analysts to predict Elon Musk's EV giant will not reach its projected 100,000 vehicle deliveries this month in China.
However, local sales may still hit a record in September after Tesla deliveries in China shot up in August approaching highs set in June. Tesla's August numbers came after capacity increases to its Shanghai facility. But uncertainty remains about weak demand in China relative to increased Tesla production.
Investors are also waiting on Tesla third-quarter delivery details. The company generally reports on the second day of the new quarter.
Tesla China wait times for new vehicles have come down sharply in recent weeks and Musk's company is offering a new insurance subsidy which serves as a de facto price cut.
Reuters also reported Tuesday that Tesla plans to keep production at its newly upgraded Shanghai plant at around 93% of capacity through the end of year. The recent improvements to the plant increased production capacity by almost a third.
This comes after capacity increases to Tesla's Shanghai facility raised deliveries to around 77,000 autos in China for August. However, more than 42,000 of those were exports, meaning Tesla deliveries totaled 34,502 vehicles to consumers in China.
Globally, Tesla is expecting a "very high volume" of vehicle deliveries during the end of the third quarter, according to an internal email obtained by Eletrek.
Many analysts are predicting Tesla will deliver a record number of vehicles during the third quarter. Estimates place deliveries in the range of 350,000-370,000.
Tesla stock was up 2.6% to 283.14 during Tuesday's market trading. The stock closed Monday up 0.3% to 276.01.
Futures Fall On Apple iPhone News, Yields Nearing 4%
Tesla Vs China EVs
While Elon Musk has ramped up Model 3 and Model Y production in China, they are not new releases. Aging vehicles from other EV makers have seen demand fall substantially.
Meanwhile, Tesla and its Model 3 face new competition in the China EV marketplace from BYD, Nio Li Auto, and XPeng.
BYD, the world's largest maker of EV and plug-in hybrids and China's largest seller of pure electrics, is taking on Tesla directly for the first time.
BYD's Seal sedan has roughly equal dimensions and range to a Model 3 — but is $10,000 cheaper. BYD kicked off deliveries in late August, with 1,726 for the month, but are expected to surge in the coming months.
BYD new-vehicle registrations last week increased 28% to 44,960, as it continued to lead China EV manufacturers. Luxury EV startup Nio saw its vehicle registrations increase 63% to 2,844 last week. Nio is also looking to challenge Tesla market share with its ET5 sedan, priced just above the Model 3. ET5 deliveries begin on Sept. 30.
XPeng vehicle registration increased 11% to 1,975 last week. The latest vehicle registration data comes ahead of monthly sales from XPEV, Li Auto and Nio on Saturday. BYD is expected to report a day or two later.
On Monday, Li Auto said it expects to deliver around 25,500 vehicles in the third quarter, down from its previous forecast of 27,000-29,000 vehicles.
Li Auto said the downgrade was a "direct consequence of the supply chain constraint, while the underlying demand for the company's vehicles remains robust."
Please follow Kit Norton on Twitter @KitNorton for more coverage.
