Tesla sales fall 13 per cent in Q1 after backlash against Elon Musk – National [Video]

Tesla’s first-quarter deliveries fell 13 per cent, hurt by backlash against CEO Elon Musk’s political stance, rising competition and its aging line up of electric vehicles, sending its shares down more than four per cent in premarket trading.

It delivered 336,681 vehicles in the first quarter, down from 386,810 units a year ago. Tesla was expected to report about 372,410 vehicles, according to an average estimate of 15 analysts from Visible Alpha.

The electric automaker’s stumbling sales indicate that the one-time leading brand is reeling from the fallout of the company not refreshing its vehicle lineup in years and Musk embracing hard-right politics.

China’s BYD is set to unseat Tesla as the top global EV seller for the first time this year with a 15.7 per cent market share, ahead of Tesla’s 15.3 per cent, according to Counterpoint Research.

Musk has pledged a return to growth after Tesla’s annual deliveries dipped last …