Welcome To Hell, Elon

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Tesla is in a world of hurt. Sales in California, its main market in the U.S., plummeted 31% in January from a year ago. European numbers are even worse, dropping 43% in the year’s first two months. And in China, by far its most important market for profitability, Tesla sales crashed 29% through February. Its stock has tanked, dropping 34% this year. A backlash has grown against part-time CEO Elon Musk–who also leads five other companies–with protests at Tesla stores and the torching of vehicles as he carries out a clumsy attempt to slash government workers and spending as Trump's DOGE master.

But things are about to get worse.


Falling sales indicate that the company's financial health is fundamentally faltering as competitors are surging, particularly rival BYD. The Chinese EV and battery maker for the first time topped Tesla in revenue in 2024 and is on pace to leave it in the dust as the global leader in electric vehicle sales this year. Tesla’s brand is becoming toxic in California, which has nurtured it since the Roadster arrived in 2008. It’s even failing on the technology front, with BYD outpacing it with a super-fast charging battery system and Waymo dominating in self-driving cars, which Musk has bet the company on.

“Many have out-Tesla-ed Tesla in software, range and in intelligent driving and are making Tesla look like the laggard.”

The worst by far, though, is what’s happening to Tesla in China, where it opened its Shanghai plant in 2019. That plant, the first in China wholly owned by a foreign carmaker, marked a turning point for Tesla, fueling a massive sales spike and pushing it into the black consistently thanks to low-cost Chinese labor, parts and logistics. But a decline in that market, where Tesla has seen consistent growth up until this year, threatens to narrow its already shrinking profit margins. A big reason for slower sales: China’s domestic EV companies are starting to beat Tesla on, well, everything.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanohnsma ... KocKGbVMmg