About two months ago, Elon Musk promised to take a step back and focus on Tesla again. But so far, Tesla has had little impact on its fifth straight month in sales outside the United States, according to data released today by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) (June 25). The company sold just 13,863 cars last month, down nearly 28% from the same period last year. Tesla’s market share in Europe also fell to 1.2% from 1.8% last year. Tesla’s shares fell 4% today, removing most of the stock’s earnings from the Robotaxi offering earlier this week.
Tesla’s year-end performance in Europe also suffered losses. The company sold 75,196 vehicles in the first five months of 2025, a sharp drop from 119,482 in the same period last year. Meanwhile, rival electric car manufacturers are taking the lead in the region, with overall EV sales up 27% in May from 2024. It is worth noting that China’s SAIC Motor grew the biggest year-on-year in Europe in May, with electric vehicle sales rising 22.5%.
Other Chinese automakers are also making rapid gains in Europe. According to data released yesterday (June 24), Chinese auto companies doubled their market share in May, up from 2.9% in the same period last year, according to data released by automotive industry data provider Jato Dynamics. There are a total of 65,808 Chinese-made vehicles in the region. Byd earlier this year marked Tesla as the world’s largest electric car manufacturer (Tesla), the first sales of a Musk-led company in April. (According to the registration number, it sold 40 fewer vehicles than Tesla.)
“Despite the EU’s tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, their car brands are still growing strongly throughout Europe,” Felipe Munoz, a global analyst at Jato Dynamics, said in a statement. “Their momentum is partly due to their decision to push alternative powertrains, such as plug-in hybrids and full hybrids, into the region.”
To stay competitive and modernize its lineup, Tesla recently began offering updated versions of the latest sales Y SUV. But so far, these changes have had limited impact on the company’s performance in Europe.
One notable exception is Norway, and Tesla is still outstanding. The Norwegian Road Federation said the country led the world to adopt electric vehicles, with Tesla registrations soaring to 2,600 last month, a 213% increase from the same period last year. The jump is primarily driven by Model Y sales, with sales of the model up from 690 units in May 2024 to 2,346 units.
