Tesla has lost more than $77 billion in market capitalization over the past week, burdened by a sales slump in China and arson near the electric vehicle maker’s German factory.
The Austin, Texas-based company is currently valued at about $566.34 billion, down from a market cap of $643.46 billion on Feb. 28. Since Jan. 2, the company has lost roughly $224 billion in market valuation.
Tesla shares fell nearly 4% to $180 on Tuesday, following a more than 7% decline on Monday. Shares were down slightly in premarket trading on Wednesday.
The EV maker shipped 60,365 units made in China last month, a 19% decrease compared to the previous year, according to preliminary data from the Chinese Passenger Car Association released Monday. Those results showed a drastic decline from sales in prior months; Tesla sold 71,447 units in January, 94,139 in December, and 82,432 in November. It’s the lowest monthly report for the company since December 2022.
Luckily for Tesla, it wasn’t the only automaker with a poor showing last month in China. BYD, the Warren Buffet-backed Chinese automaker that dethroned Tesla as the world’s top seller of EVs in the fourth quarter, saw sales decline last month, as did EV startups Nio and Xpeng.
The slump is partially due to China’s Lunar New Year holiday, which landed in February this year. During the week-long celebration, many stores and factories were shut down.
Plus, Tesla is embroiled in a price war in China as EV makers continue to slash prices and offer new incentives to attract consumers.
In February, through incentives, Tesla cut the cost of buying its rear-wheel-drive Model 3 sedans and Model Y SUVs by as much as 34,600 yuan ($4,807). That move came after BYD dramatically cut prices and announced cheaper editions for four consumer vehicles, which sparked actions from several other companies.
BYD has added to its aggressive push to offer cheaper models this week. On Monday, the Shenzhen-based automaker introduced a 12% less expensive version of its best-selling Yuan Plus crossover. Then, on Wednesday, it revealed an updated version of its most affordable EV — the Seagull — with a 5% cheaper price tag.
Adding to Tesla’s troubles abroad, an entity going by “Vulkangruppe” — or “Volcano Group” — claimed responsibility on Tuesday for an arson attack on an electricity transmission tower near the Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg in Gruenheide, Germany. The far-left group disavowed Tesla CEO Elon Musk as a “technofascist” who is “following in the prepared brown footsteps of other patriarchal pioneers” and exacerbating the climate crisis.
The gigactory, which usually makes 375,000 Model Y SUVs each year, was left without power. The disruption and a subsequent increase in production will cost Tesla “in the high hundreds of millions,” the plant’s senior director, Andre Thierig, told Fortune.
Musk criticized the attack, writing on X that “These are either the dumbest eco-terrorists on Earth or they’re puppets of those who don’t have good environmental goals.”
Tesla isn’t alone in losing value over the past week — its fellow “Magnificent Seven” members have lost hundreds of billions recently.
On Tuesday alone, the group of technology companies — including Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta — shed a combined $233 billion in market cap. The only member of the illustrious group not to lose value on Tuesday was Nvidia, as the chipmaker continues to take Wall Street by storm through an artificial intelligence-fueled boom.
“We are in the midst of a pullback,” Peter Cardillo, chief market strategist at Spartan Capital Securities, told MarketWatch. “How far we go down depends. If there is a curveball by Powell tomorrow and employment numbers are stronger than expectations, then the Ides of March are upon us.”