Written by Cláudio Afonso | info@claudio-afonso.com
On Monday, Elon Musk, warned for the “recent inflation pressure in raw materials & logistics” that is affecting Tesla and SpaceX. Today, the company raised the prices of all its models in the U.S. and on Model Y, Model 3 in China. After these price increases, Model 3 Performance costs now $78,440, Model Y Performance $85,440, Model S Plaid $158,440, and Model X Plaid $162,440 — all of these prices are for the fully optioned version. Comparing Year-over-Year, Model X Long Range was the model with the highest price increase, from $89,990 to $114,990 — 28%.
The recent Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is causing higher prices in many different sectors, from materials used on vehicles production but also on gas, housing and food. Also, and according to Reuters, two Ukraine companies (Ingas and Cryoinare) are responsible for half of the world’s semiconductor-grade neon, critical for the lasers used to make chips. Both of them recently shuttered their operations after Russia’s invasion.
Global commodity prices are on track for the biggest weekly rally in more than 50 years and Europe’s natural gas prices have hit a new record, as the war in Ukraine triggers “exceptional moves” in raw materials from oil to wheat. — Financial Times added.
Tesla was named the Best Overall Luxury Brand of the year by The Kelley Blue Book Awards, for the third consecutive year. The best overall brand was Honda due to its “impressive range of vehicles and terrific quality make it this year’s winner”. Toyota got the Best Truck Award for its “excellent reliability, capability, and resale value”. Check the winners here.
On March 11th, AutoData Corp. reported that Tesla sold 42,742 vehicles in February in the US, representing an increase of 98% Year-over-Year. Year to date, Tesla sold 82,907 units in the country, up 79% from 2021. Meanwhile, Ford sold 2,096 EVs in February and 4,699 year to date.
According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), Tesla sold 56,515 GigaShangai-made vehicles in February, including 33,315 for export. When compared to the same period of last year, it is an increase of 208.5%.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | info@claudio-afonso.com