Tesla increases price of Model S, X in US after shares slump

Tesla increased the prices of Model S and Model X vehicles in the US, after the company’s share price slumped following first quarter earnings.

The Austin, Texas-based automaker raised the starting prices of all variants of its premium Model S sedans and Model X sports utility vehicles by $2,500, or about 2 per cent to 3 per cent, according to the company’s US website.

Tesla Q1 Earnings Call and Q&A → https://t.co/THWUwxgvYT

— Tesla (@Tesla) April 18, 2023

New starting prices of Model S, X

The latest starting prices of both models are $87,490 and $97,490, respectively.
The move claws back some of the steep price cuts imposed earlier this year, which have squeezed profit margins.

Tesla shares slid the most in more than three months Thursday after chief executive officer Elon Musk indicated his company will keep cutting prices to stoke demand even after markdowns early this year took a significant toll on profitability.

The automaker’s operating margin shrank to 11.4 per cent in the first quarter, a roughly two-year low, after the company marked down its electric vehicles in January and March.

Tesla’s new battery factory

Tesla will build a new battery factory in Shanghai that will start production in the second quarter of next year, the official Xinhua News Agency reported earlier this month.

Read: Tesla to build new battery factory, says Elon Musk

Tesla will manufacture its Megapack large-scale energy-storage unit in the new facility, which adds to the company’s Gigafactory for electric vehicles in Shanghai and deepens its investment in China.