Concerns about global economic development seem to have bounced off tech billionaire Elon Musk (51): As the company announced Thursday night, electric car company Tesla posted a third-quarter profit of $3.3 billion. This corresponds to a doubling compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
Growth is staggering given widespread global inflation and concerns over economic development. Tesla delivered almost 344,000 electric cars in the third quarter. This is a new record.
Shareholders are not happy
Tesla also increased sales sharply to $21.5 billion. This corresponds to an increase of 56 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year. But analysts were expecting $500 million more.
Tesla shares fell 3.4 percent to $214.40 in after-hours trading following the release of business figures following the closure of the US stock market.
Corona unstable in China
It’s also unclear whether Musk will meet his ambitious annual target for Tesla: Delivery of electric cars will increase by 50 percent in 2022 compared to the previous year. For the year as a whole, that would be 1.4 million cars. If Tesla still wants to meet that goal, the group needs to bring more than half a million cars to customers in the fourth quarter.
According to Tesla, whether this will be successful depends on the availability of components and the stability of the supply chain. The company cited battery bottlenecks as a barrier to e-car growth. The strict zero Covid policy implemented in China continues to create uncertainty. Tesla operates a factory in the Chinese metropolis of Shanghai. If another curfew is imposed there, it will have a huge impact.
Additionally, inflation and subdued economic expectations could reduce demand for relatively expensive Teslas. (SDA/sfa)