Tesla Announces Record Sales for 2022

Facts

• On Monday, Elon Musk's Tesla announced it set a new record by delivering 1.3M cars in 2022, 40% more than in 2021 but less than needed to meet the billionaire's 50% annual growth target.
• The company reportedly delivered more than 405k vehicles in the final three months of the year, just shy of the 430k predicted by Wall Street analysts.
• The Austin, Texas-based manufacturer attempted to meet expectations by offering a rare $7.5k discount on some models, but a number of factors, including a rise in COVID cases in China, led to the shortfall.
• In a statement, Tesla thanked its customers, as well as its employees, suppliers, and shareholders, for contributing to a “great” year despite the COVID situation and problems in the supply chain.
• This comes as COVID, supply chain issues, potentially lesser demand for the vehicles, and concerns that Musk has been distracted from Tesla since his purchase of Twitter have caused Tesla's stock to dip over 65% last year, more than triple the S&P 500 dip of 19.4%.
• Amid Tesla’s mixed sales news, Reuters has reported that Tom Zhu, the company’s vice president for Greater China, was promoted to overseeing production in the US, as well as sales in North America and Europe, in addition to his role in China.

Sources: CBS, BBC News, Verge, and Reuters.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by NY Times. Musk should consider devoting less time to Twitter and more time to helping Tesla meet its current challenges. Although its increase in sales outpaced the rest of the industry, much of the company’s appeal has relied on Tesla’s ability to grow at an even greater rate, like other Big Tech companies. If Musk doesn’t get things under control, Tesla’s stock dip could be just the start of great troubles.
• Narrative B, as provided by BreitBart. There’s no reason to panic. Tesla is still growing, and there’s still a strong chance it’ll be the most valuable company in the near future. The stock market is volatile, and it’s not an accurate — or sole — indicator of a company’s success, especially relative to the excellent work of Tesla’s employees and the car-maker's record performance during a strenuous year.