Just 14 percent of Chinese electric vehicle (EV) buyers named Tesla as their top pick last year, down from 18 percent in 2023 and 30 percent in 2020, according to a UBS survey cited in the the South China Morning Post. If the European and US markets are also taken into account, Elon Musk’s EV company has slipped from being preferred by 22 percent of customers to 18 percent.
The Switzerland-headquartered investment bank noted that Musk’s political involvement with US President Donald Trump, who enlisted the world’s richest man to be his cost-cutting tsar after taking office in January, likely led to “brand damage” for Tesla. Blowback against Musk’s controversial cutbacks to the US government has taken the form of protests and Tesla boycotts – meaning Tesla’s popularity has likely slipped even further than when the 10,500-participant survey was taken.
The company’s stumbles have enabled its Chinese rivals like BYD and Xiaomi Auto to fill the gap. “In China, we see intense competition and Tesla is no longer seen as the technology leader,” the UBS report said. In Europe, April reportedly saw BYD sell more pure EVs than Tesla for the first time, a year-on-year leap of 169 percent. Tesla sales on the continent, meanwhile, dropped by 49 percent.
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In its report, UBS warned that the trends made it “cautious on Tesla stock.” However, the EV company’s share price rallied on Tuesday following a social media post by Musk promising to be “super focused” on his companies – which include X (formerly Twitter) and SpaceX along with Tesla – as he stepped away from government work, CNBC reported.
In contrast, BYD stocks tumbled earlier this week after the company announced significant price cuts on 22 of its models, EuroNews reported. However, the outlet also noted that BYD remained on a “strong growth trajectory” in Europe, where a new manufacturing plant in Hungary was expected to boost sales – countering the 17 percent tariff rate now being enforced on its Chinese-built cars in the European Union. BYD does not sell EVs in the US, so is unlikely to be impacted by Trump’s recent tariffs.
In mainland China, meanwhile, Shanghai-based analyst Gao Shen told the Post that the “rise of local brands have largely siphoned off buying interest in Tesla cars.”
