Tesla Q1 sales jumped as other car makers struggle with chip shortage

Tesla delivered 310,000 vehicles in the first quarter, up roughly 68% from the same period in 2021, the company said Saturday — an impressive feat considering other automakers have reported declines in sales due to an ongoing shortage of computer chips.

Elon Musk’s electric car maker failed to meet analyst expectations of 312,000 vehicles.

But the sales increase is welcome news considering that other companies have been hamstrung by the lack of computer chips and other parts caused by the disruption to global supply chains.

Tesla broke its old quarterly delivery record of 308,600 vehicles, which was set just one quarter ago, from October through December of 2021.

Tesla delivered 185,000 vehicles in the first quarter of last year.

The global computer chip shortage has bedeviled nearly all automakers, but Tesla seems to have dealt with the shortages better than the rest of the industry.

Ford and General Motors said last week that they will each halt production at a Michigan plant due to parts shortages.

Wedbush analysts said they believe 20,000 to 25,000 sales that would have happened in the first quarter have now been pushed into the second quarter due to supply and logistics issues.

“We remain steadfastly bullish on the Tesla story and believe when factoring in all the manufacturing headwind dynamics this was a modestly bullish print,” Wedbush analysts said in a note.

Last year the company delivered a record 936,000 vehicles, an 87% increase over 2020 numbers.

The company said in February that it expects 50% annual growth in sales, meaning it expects about 1.4 million vehicles to be delivered this year.

But on a conference call with analysts, Musk said the chip shortage would stop the company from rolling out any new models this year.

Tesla has charged into 2022 with the wind at its back. Musk recently unveiled its new gigafactory in Berlin, which will be key to expanding the company’s European footprint.

Next week, Tesla is planning an official launch bash for its gigafactory in Austin.

With Post wires