NEW YORK (AP) Sales of Tesla electric cars fell sharply in the last three months as boycotts over Elon Musks political views continue to keep buyers away, a significant development given expectations that anger with the companys billionaire CEO would have faded by now.
The company reported a 13% plunge in sales on Wednesday in a sign that Musks embrace of U.S. President Donald Trump and far-right politicians in Europe has had a deep and enduring impact on Teslas brand appeal. The new figures show rival electric-vehicle makers have wasted no time to pounce on the companys weakness to steal market share and suggest Teslas quarterly earnings report later this month could also disappoint.
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. Musk himself recently said that Tesla was in the midst of a major rebound in sales.
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 3.7% in morning trading.
The numbers werent as bad as thought with all the analyst forecast cuts we saw over the past week, said Morningstars 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.
Its not clear yet if Musks latest feud with Trump will help lure back buyers who have been angry at the billionaires political positions. After Musk once again took to social media to criticize Trumps 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%.
The new figures come as Tesla is focusing less on new models and more on robots, self-driving technology and robotaxis ferrying passengers around without anyone behind the wheel.
Tesla is in the midst of a test run of robotaxis in Austin, Texas, that seems to have gone smoothly for the most part. But it also has drawn the scrutiny of federal car safety regulators because of a few mishaps, including one case in which a Tesla cab was shown on a video heading down an opposing lane .
The competition from rival EV makers is especially fierce in Europe where Chinas BYD has taken a bite out of its market share. Tesla sales fell 28% in May in 30 European countries even as the overall market for electric vehicles expanded sharply, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association.
Musk has acknowledged that his work as head of the Department of Government Efficiency and his embrace of European far-right candidates have hurt the company. But he attributed much of the sales plunge to customers holding off while they waited for new versions of Teslas best selling Model Y.
Tesla reports second quarter financial result on July 23. In the first quarter, net income fell 71%.
纽约（美联社）——由于消费者对埃隆·马斯克政治观点的抵制持续导致购车者却步，特斯拉电动汽车近三个月的销量大幅下滑。这一重要进展出乎意料，因外界此前预计针对这位亿万富翁首席执行官的不满情绪此时应已消退。
该公司周三报告销售额骤降13%，这表明马斯克对美国前总统唐纳德·特朗普及欧洲极右翼政客的公开支持，已对特斯拉的品牌吸引力造成深远且持续的负面影响。最新数据显示，竞争对手电动车制造商迅速抓住该公司疲软时机抢夺市场份额，同时暗示特斯拉本月晚些时候公布的季度财报可能同样令人失望。
今年4月至6月期间，特斯拉销量降至384,122辆，较去年同期的443,956辆有所下滑。在此期间，埃隆·马斯克正式卸任特朗普政府的成本削减顾问一职，外界对销量回升的预期随之增强。马斯克本人近日表示，特斯拉销量正处于"大幅反弹"阶段。
不过，报告中仍有部分数据令人鼓舞。Model 3和Model Y的总销量达到373,728辆，高于华尔街分析师预估的356,000辆。特斯拉股价在早盘交易中上涨了3.7%。
晨星公司的塞斯·戈德斯坦表示：“尽管过去一周分析师纷纷下调预期，但实际数据并没有预想的那么糟糕。”不过他补充说，报告总体表明特斯拉仍面临重大挑战。“当前产品线已触及市场饱和点，特斯拉需要推出新的平价车型才能提升交付量。”
马斯克承诺今年将推出一款更经济的电动汽车车型，以提振销量。
目前尚不清楚马斯克与特朗普的最新争执能否挽回那些因其政治立场而愤怒的消费者。在马斯克再次通过社交媒体批评特朗普的预算案后，这位总统于周二威胁将动用行政权力打击其旗下企业（包括特斯拉），导致特斯拉股价暴跌逾5%。
特斯拉公布最新数据之际，正将重心从新车型转向机器人、自动驾驶技术及无人驾驶出租车（robotaxi）领域，这些车辆可在无驾驶员的情况下运送乘客。
特斯拉公司正在得克萨斯州奥斯汀进行自动驾驶出租车的测试运行，总体进展似乎较为顺利。然而，由于发生了几起事故，包括一起特斯拉出租车在视频中被拍到驶入对向车道的事件，这一测试已引起联邦汽车安全监管机构的密切关注。
欧洲电动汽车市场竞争尤为激烈，中国车企**比亚迪**已抢占部分市场份额。根据欧洲汽车制造商协会数据，尽管整体电动车市场大幅扩张，**特斯拉**5月在30个欧洲国家的销量仍下跌28%。
马斯克承认，他担任政府效率部门负责人期间的工作以及他对欧洲极右翼候选人的支持对公司造成了损害。但他将销量大幅下滑的主要原因归咎于消费者在等待特斯拉畅销车型Model Y的新版本时持观望态度。
特斯拉将于7月23日公布第二季度财报。第一季度财报显示，其净利润同比下降71%。
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