Tesla China has had a strong start to 2023. According to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) released on Friday Tesla sold 66,051 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles built at Giga Shanghai last month.
While the number is still off their all-time high, the 66K sales is an impressive achievement considering Tesla shut down operations for the Chinese Lunar New Year holidays during January.
The figure represents an 18% increase from the previous month, where Tesla sold 55,796 new cars in December 2022. It is also 10% higher than the same month last year, when Tesla sold 59,845 Model 3 and Model Y cars in January 2022.
The data from the CPCA does not break down Model 3 and Model Y sales individually, nor how many were exported to other markets and how many were delivered domestically within China. Those figures should be released next week.
While January was a strong month, February should be even stronger, if the signs from last month are any indication. Tesla cut prices of the Model 3 and Model Y in China a few days into the new year, making it the second time in three months the automaker had lowered its prices. With the cuts last month the prices of the Model 3 and Model Y are currently at the lowest they have ever been, and those low prices have led to a surge in sales extending delivery wait times by several weeks.
As we reported earlier this week, Tesla is ramping up production at Giga Shanghai to 20,000 units per week to meet the increased demand.
