Tesla Sales Soared to 78,000 in June, China Car Group Estimates

Tesla has bounced back from the Shanghai lockdown, selling around 78,000 vehicles in June made at its factory in China’s biggest city.

The latest figure – an estimate from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) on Wednesday – was 142% above the 32,165 China-made vehicles the US electric vehicle maker produced in May, and 135% over its tally from a year ago.

Tesla’s factory in China’s economic hub was badly affected in the second quarter by a lockdown, which forced the site to halt production for 22 days from late March.

The plant, which manufactures Model 3s and Model Ys, reopened on April 19 and resumed exports on May 11, but it had struggled to get production back to pre-lockdown levels.

The difficulties in China were viewed as a key factor that led Tesla to report an 18% drop in second-quarter deliveries from the previous quarter, ending a nearly two-year run of record quarterly deliveries.

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Market Boosted

Last month, an internal production memo said that Tesla was aiming to make more than 71,000 vehicles at its Shanghai plant in June.

The plant is undergoing an upgrade to boost its output, which requires it to suspend most production in the first two weeks of July, according to a separate internal memo. The factory’s goal is to eventually produce 22,000 cars per week, that note said.

Beyond Tesla, the CPCA estimated that 1.926 million passenger cars were sold across China in June, up 22% year-on-year, helped by recent efforts to stimulate the market by local authorities.

Electric vehicles, in particular, were selling strongly and the association said overall June sales could hit 546,000, up 130% year-on-year, led by BYD which the CPCA estimated sold 134,000 vehicles during the month.