Tesla has sluggish start to the year with first annual sales decline in nearly a decade [Video]

Tesla’s global sales rose 2.3 per cent in the fourth quarter after a sluggish start to the year contributed to the electric car company’s first year-over-year sales decline since at least 2015.

The annual decline for the Austin, Texas, company came despite offers such as zero per cent financing, free charging and low-priced leases.

Tesla delivered 495,570 vehicles from October through December, boosting deliveries to 1.79 million for the full year. But that was 1.1 per cent below 2023 sales of 1.81 million, as overall demand for electric vehicles in the U.S. and elsewhere slowed.

The fourth-quarter boost came with a cost. Analysts polled by FactSet expected Tesla’s average sales price to fall to just over $41,000 US in the quarter, the lowest in at least four years.

That doesn’t bode well for Tesla’s fourth-quarter earnings, which the company said it would announce on Jan. 29.