Tesla China sold 70,847 vehicles in December, a record high - PingWest

Tesla China sold 70,847 vehicles in December, a record high

Tesla China

Tesla China sold 70,847 vehicles in December, a record high

Rebbeca Ren

posted on 1 hours ago

Despite global supply chain and logistics challenges, Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory continues to hold up well.

Tesla sold 70,847 China-made vehicles in December, the highest monthly rate since it began production in China in 2019, according to data released by the China Passenger Car Association on Tuesday.

Tesla China's December sales, including 245 exports, nearly tripled from the same month last year and were 34% higher than November's sales.

In November, Tesla, which is making Model 3 sedans and Model Y sport-utility vehicles in Shanghai, sold 52,859 China-made vehicles, including 21,127 for export.

According to Reuters' calculations, Tesla's total sales of China-made vehicles reached at least 473,078 last year, accounting for more than half of the 936,000 vehicles the US automaker delivered globally last year. 

Previously, Tesla guided an annual output of 450,000 vehicles out of Gigafactory Shanghai in 2021.

Wall Street presently expects Tesla to produce over 1.4 million vehicles in 2022, representing a nearly 50% growth year over year.

Despite global supply chain and logistics challenges, Gigafactory Shanghai continues to hold up well. Currently, 90% of the parts used in China-made Tesla vehicles are sourced from local producers, which can significantly reduce costs while steadily increasing productivity.

Tesla also sees China as the driving force behind its continued success. "For all of Q3, China remained our main export hub," chief financial officer Zachary Kirkhorn said on the Q3 earnings call. "Production has ramped well in China, and we are driving improvements to increase the production rate further."

According to CPCA, Chinese EV maker Nio delivered 10,489 cars last month, a year-on-year increase of 49.7%, while Xpeng delivered 16,000 vehicles. Passenger car sales in December in China totaled 2.14 million, down 7.7% from a year earlier.