Tesla, accustomed to rapid growth, reported a decline in car sales in the first three months of the year as models from other automakers appeared to gain strength.
The company headed by Elon Musk said it delivered 387,000 vehicles worldwide in the first quarter, down 8.5 percent from 423,000 vehicles in the same period last year. The number of sales was lower than expected.
The reduced sales are the latest sign that Tesla’s dominance of the market for electric vehicles is slipping. The company’s shares have fallen 30 percent this year as investors worry the company isn’t doing enough to respond to intensifying competition.
In China, Tesla faces BYD and dozens of other rivals with ambitions to expand globally. In Europe, established car makers like Volkswagen and BMW have introduced more compelling products. And in the United States, sales of electric cars aren’t growing as fast as they were last year.
BYD earlier said on Tuesday that it sold about 300,000 electric vehicles, up 13 percent from the same period last year. The company also sold 324,000 plug-in hybrid vehicles in the first quarter, up 15 percent from a year ago.
Tesla pioneered mass-market electric cars, but its lineup is aging. Tesla’s only completely new model from 2020 is the Cybertruck, a futuristic pickup sold in limited numbers last year. The least expensive version Tesla says it will deliver this year starts at around $80,000, limiting its appeal to well-heeled early adopters.
Tesla is working on an electric car that will cost around $25,000, but the model is not expected to sell in large numbers until 2026. Meanwhile, Tesla remains dependent on the Model Y sport utility vehicle and the Model 3 sedan for for the most part. of its sales.
Tesla has repeatedly cut prices, but analysts say the strategy has lowered its profits without doing enough to boost sales. The company has recently slightly raised the prices of some cars in the United States and China. The Model Y starts at about $45,000 before federal and state tax breaks, after a $1,000 increase announced this week.
Mr. Musk did not give a clear indication of how the company plans to regain momentum. At the same time, his polarizing statements and endorsement of right-wing conspiracy theories have alienated many of the left-leaning customers most likely to buy electric cars.
Tesla stock fell nearly 5 percent in early trading Tuesday.
