Tesla gross sales in Europe have collapsed by one-third this 12 months, information reveals, after Elon Musk warned the electrical carmaker confronted “just a few tough quarters” forward.
In keeping with the figures printed on Thursday by the European Vehicle Producers Affiliation (ACEA), gross sales of Tesla automobiles in Europe slumped by 33% to 110,000 within the first half of 2025, in contrast with 165,000 within the first half of 2024.
The information suggests Tesla remains to be attempting to emerge from a gross sales rut in Europe, even after releasing a refreshed model of the Mannequin Y, its bestselling automotive. It’s not the one carmaker struggling to tempt European prospects, with whole new automotive gross sales throughout the EU down by 7% in June.
Nevertheless, Tesla faces particular challenges. Musk, whose shares within the firm have made him the world’s richest man, has contributed to the decline by backing Europe’s far-right political events, and briefly allying himself with Donald Trump, who’s deeply unpopular throughout the continent.
The Tesla chief govt’s alliance with Trump has since blown up spectacularly, whereas the corporate has come below strain within the US from the president’s anti-EV insurance policies.
Gross sales throughout Europe – together with the EU, UK, Norway and Switzerland – have been down for the US carmaker by greater than a fifth year-on-year in June, to 35,000.
Tesla shares fell by 6% in pre-market buying and selling earlier than Wall Road opened on Thursday, after Musk mentioned on Wednesday evening that the electrical automotive pioneer “most likely might have just a few tough quarters” forward.
Musk linked falling earnings to Trump slashing the incentives out there for electrical carmakers.
The president’s tax and spending plans embody a clampdown on gross sales of emissions credit by electrical car makers to extra closely polluting rivals, which had offered billions of {dollars} of income for Tesla over a number of years.
The electrical car maker mentioned revenues fell by 12% within the second quarter in contrast with the identical interval final 12 months, coming in at $22.5bn (£16.6bn); under Wall Road expectations of $22.7bn. Working earnings additionally fell to $900m, a 42% lower since final 12 months.
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The UK has been a uncommon shiny spot for Tesla in Europe, with gross sales down just one.3% year-on-year within the first half of the 2025, in accordance with the Society of Motor Producers and Merchants, the British business’s foyer group. But the image within the EU has been bleak: the ACEA information confirmed Tesla gross sales have been down by 40% year-on-year in June within the EU, and 44% down within the first half of 2025.
Throughout all European markets, Tesla’s share of gross sales has dropped from 2.4% in 2024 to 1.6% in 2025 – though it might regain some floor as gross sales of the refreshed Mannequin Y choose up throughout the continent.
But reasonably than bettering the merchandise purchased by shoppers, Musk is pinning a lot of his hopes on future earnings from driverless taxis run by AI. The corporate has launched a pilot taxi programme in Austin, Texas, and Musk has repeatedly touted it as the corporate’s most important alternative.
Matt Britzman, an fairness analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, an funding platform, mentioned Tesla’s second-quarter numbers have been “objectively poor”.
“The everyday playbook for the previous few quarters has been declining fundamentals however sufficient AI hype to maintain traders sleeping at evening,” he mentioned. “Tesla is in a really small cohort of corporations with sufficient progress potential that traders are, for now a minimum of, keen to look previous weakening core financials.”