Shares of Tesla received a boost this week after the electric vehicle maker finally received some positive delivery news from the world’s largest market.
Chinese consumers purchased more than 1.7 million electric vehicles in October, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. Through September, U.S. consumers had purchased 1.2 million EVs in 2025.
World’s top EV markets in 2024
- China: 6.4 million EVs sold
- Europe: 2.2 million EVs sold
- U.S.: 1.2 million EVs sold
- Rest of world: 1 million EVs sold
Source: International Energy Agency
China is the world’s largest EV market and Tesla’s second-largest customer. Sales in Greater China increased by 33% year over year in the third quarter.
Tesla sold 460,380 vehicles in China in 2024, according to data compiled by World Population Review. While that is more than 100,000 vehicles short of the number of cars the company sold in the U.S., it was nearly 10 times more than in third-place Canada.
EV sales have been on a roll in China this year as buyers get in ahead of the end of government subsidies that are scheduled to be cut in 2026, ahead of being completely phased out in 2028.
Tesla shares rose 3.4% to $443.85 on Dec. 3 following some positive news from the region.
Tesla’s Shanghai Gigafactory is much busier this November than it was last year.
Photo by Xiaolu Chu on Getty Images
Tesla Shanghai factory has a blowout month
Unlike the U.S. auto market, Chinese consumers have embraced electric vehicles.
The Chinese government has been pushing its citizens to adopt green technology using cash, tax, and other incentives for purchasing EVs and hybrids.
Tesla’s sales in China dropped to a three-year low in October, largely due to increased competition from domestic rivals. However, the company received some positive news from the region this week.
Sales of Tesla vehicles produced at its Shanghai Gigafactory increased by 9.9% year over year in November. Sales of Model 3 and Model Y vehicles made at the factory jumped 41% month over month, according to China Passenger Car Association data cited by Reuters.
The November increase was the largest in 14 months.
The introduction of the new extended-range helped increase sales of the rear-wheel-drive Model Y in November, which followed earlier launches of a longer-range Model 3 and the six-seat Model Y L in China.
Tesla had been lowering prices to garner market share in the country.
China EV industry is starting to show cracks
China not only sold more EVs in 2024 than the rest of the world combined, but it also nearly sold more plug-in hybrids (4.9 million) than the rest of the world sold EVs.
However, analysts at JPMorgan expect mainland car sales to decline in 2026 for the first time since 2020, if the government proceeds with its plan to cut government subsidies.
The firm expects the overall market to shrink by 3% to 5% next year. EV buyers are currently exempt from a 10% sales tax on EV purchases. That exemption will be cut in half in January and will be completely phased out by 2028.
BYD, the company most responsible for China’s green vehicle revolution, is now facing a period of slowing growth.
On Sept. 4, BYD cut its 2025 sales target by as much as 16% to 4.6 million vehicles.
If those numbers hold, it would be the company’s slowest annual growth rate in five years. BYD had told investors earlier this year that it expected to sell 5.5 million vehicles, but after the latest quarter, those goals may prove a bit lofty.
At the end of August, BYD reported quarterly financial results, showing a profit that declined year over year for the first time in three-and-a-half years.
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