Tesla sales plummet across Europe even as new model Y ramps up

Tesla sales plummet across Europe even as new model Y ramps up.

Tesla Inc. sales kept sliding across Europe’s biggest electric-car markets in April, despite the company rolling out an updated version of its most popular vehicle.

The carmaker registered only 512 new vehicles last month in the UK, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said Tuesday, down 62 percent from a year earlier. Tesla’s plunge was even more pronounced in Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden, with sales dropping by at least two-thirds in each country.

Tesla saw steep declines in eight of Europe’s 10 largest EV markets even as it started shipping the redesigned Model Y sport utility vehicle to customers. Changing over production lines at assembly plants around the globe — including in Germany — cost the company several weeks of output early this year and contributed to the company’s worst quarterly sales since 2022.

The slump continuing into April suggests that Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk’s antics and work for US President Donald Trump is costing Tesla sales in spite of the company sprucing up its lineup.

The CEO has been a top adviser for an administration waging a global trade war and rethinking the US’s role in alliances including NATO.

Tesla shares fell as much as 1.9 percent before the start of regular trading. The stock has fallen 42 percent from its record high reached in mid-December.