Tesla slashes Model Y prices in Europe after China price cuts

By Hyunjoo Jin and Christoph Steitz

(Reuters) -Tesla has slashed prices of its Model Y cars across Europe including in Germany, a week after the company cut prices in China in the face of uncertain electric-vehicle demand.

The cuts, as well as lowered price targets from brokerages UBS and Wells Fargo, sent Tesla (NASDAQ:)’s shares down nearly 3%, adding to what has been a poor start for the stock in 2024.

Germany-listed rivals Mercedes Benz (ETR:) Group, Volkswagen (ETR:) and Bayerische Motoren Werke fell between 2.3% and 3.3%. In the United States, Ford Motor (NYSE:) and General Motors (NYSE:) were down 2% and 1.1%, respectively.

Tesla reduced prices in Germany for its Model Y Long Range and Model Y Performance by 5,000 euros to 49,990 euros ($54,340) and 55,990 euros respectively, representing a discount of 9% and 8.1% compared to their previous prices.

It also cut the price of Model Y rear-wheel drive models by 4.2%, according to data on Tesla’s website.

In France, the company reduced its Model Y prices by as much as 6.7%. Prices were cut by up to 10.8% in Denmark.

In the Netherlands, prices for the Model Y were slashed by up to 7.7% and, Tesla cut prices by between 5.6% and 7.1% in Norway, CNBC reported.

While no reason was given for the move, EV demand has generally been slowing as a deduction in state subsidies and high borrowing costs prompt buyers to rethink big purchases.

Tesla struggled in Germany in 2023, posting a 9% decline in new registrations to 63,685 vehicles, against an 11.4% increase in EV sales in Europe’s top economy, according to figures from the German federal motor authority KBA.

As a result, Tesla lost its crown as the largest seller of EVs in Germany to Volkswagen, which took a 13.5% share of the market compared to Tesla’s 12.1%.

On Wednesday, Wells Fargo and UBS cut their price targets on Tesla’s stock by more than 8% and nearly 11%, respectively. The stock has already declined about 11.5% so far in January, based on the last closing price.

The latest price cut comes after Tesla announced last week that it would suspend most of its car production at its factory near Berlin from Jan. 29 to Feb. 11. The company blamed a lack of components due to changes in transport routes because of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea.

Germany’s EV subsidy programme, originally intended to apply until the end of 2024, ended prematurely last month, a move that was expected to hit German carmakers already struggling to bring down prices to levels offered by Chinese and U.S. competitors.

($1 = 0.9200 euros)