Tesla’s new vehicle deliveries fell short of Wall Street expectations in the fourth quarter, adding to worries that higher interest rates and an economic slowdown could crimp demand for the US electric carmaker’s models in 2023.
The disappointment came despite record quarterly deliveries in the latest three months, as Tesla’s new plants in Berlin and Texas continued to increase production. The company said on Monday it delivered 405,278 vehicles in the three months to the end of December, an increase of 11 per cent from the record it hit in the preceding quarter. Most analysts had expected deliveries to reach 420,000-430,000.
The late-year jump in sales meant that Tesla delivered just over 1.3mn new vehicles to customers in 2022, an increase of 40 per cent from the previous year. Chief executive Elon Musk had predicted early in the year that the company would hit its longer-range goal of expanding deliveries by 50 per cent annually, though he grew more cautious as the year wore on and the company was hit by Covid-related production shutdowns in China, supply chain challenges and early signs of weakening demand.