NEW YORK — Sales of Tesla electric cars fell sharply in the last three months as boycotts over Elon Musk's political views continue to keep buyers away.
The 13% plunge in global sales over a year earlier suggests the damage to Tesla's brand from Musk's embrace of U.S. President Donald Trump and far-right European politicians is much deeper, widespread and lasting than some investors had expected. The figures reported by Tesla on Wednesday also signal that its quarterly earnings report due later this month could disappoint as rival electric-vehicle makers pounce on its weakness and steal market share. v
Sales fell to 384,122 in April through June, down from 443,956 in the same three months last year.
During the latest period, Musk formally left the Trump administration as a cost-cutting czar, and hopes rose that sales would recover. The Tesla CEO himself recently said the company was in the midst of a ''major rebound'' in sales, a statement contradicted by the latest figures.
Still, some parts of the report were encouraging. Sales of the Models 3 and Y totaled 373,728, above the estimate of 356,000 from Wall Street analysts. Tesla shares rose 5% on the news.
''The numbers weren't as bad as thought with all the analyst forecast cuts we saw over the past week,'' said Morningstar's Seth Goldstein, though he added the report overall showed the company faces big challenges. ''The current product lineup is at market saturation and Tesla will need the new affordable vehicle to grow deliveries.''
Musk has promised a cheaper EV model would be coming this year that would boost sales.
It's not clear yet if Musk's latest feud with Trump will help lure back buyers who have been angry at the billionaire's political positions. After Musk once again took to social media to criticize Trump's budget bill, the president threatened Tuesday to use the power of his office to hurt his companies, including Tesla, pushing its stock down more than 5%.
