SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Tesla Inc. on Friday slashed prices for its electric vehicles in Europe, Israel and Singapore, expanding a global discount drive it began in China in January while raising concerns about its industry-leading profit margin.
Tesla last week reported first-quarter deliveries up just 4% from the previous quarter despite offering discounts in the United States, China, Japan, Australia and South Korea aimed at spurring demand.
Days after releasing the disappointing delivery data, Tesla announced its fifth vehicle price reduction this year in the U.S. market, as Washington prepares to introduce tougher standards that will limit EV tax credits.
In 2022, the world’s most valuable automaker also missed CEO Elon Musk’s delivery target of 50% growth, held to a 40% increase due to logistical issues and slowing demand.
Tesla said on Friday it cut prices in numerous European markets including Germany and France because of a scaling up and improvement in its production capacity.
