Tesla sales are slumping in the US, too
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- Tesla sales are slumping across the globe, including in the US.
- According to industry data, new US Tesla registrations fell 11% in January, even as rivals' sales surged.
- Sales have plummeted in Europe and China, and Tesla faces protests over CEO Elon Musk in the US.
As the backlash against Elon Musk grows, the US has joined the long list of places where Tesla's sales are plummeting.
New Tesla registrations in the US fell 11% in January from a year earlier, according to data from S&P Global Mobility — even as the company's EV rivals surged.
Ford's electric vehicle registrations rose 54% from a year earlier, while other legacy carmakers like Chevrolet and VW also saw big jumps in sales.
Tesla remains the dominant player in the US market, accounting for 42% of total EV sales and selling 35,000 more EVs than second-place Ford in the first month of the year.
But the automaker is facing a difficult period as sales slump worldwide and the backlash against CEO Musk builds.
Tesla's European sales almost halved in January, with Musk being heavily criticized across the continent for his attacks on European leaders and endorsement of German far-right party AfD.
The billionaire's work cutting the federal workforce with DOGE has also sparked protests across the US, and Tesla has become a target.
The "Tesla Takedown" movement has held protests outside the company's showrooms in multiple US cities, and the discontent over Musk's actions has pushed some Tesla owners to sell up.
In some states, Tesla vehicles and dealerships have also been hit by vandalism and arson. In Oregon, police are investigating after a dealership in a Portland suburb was hit with gunfire for the second time in a week.
In China, meanwhile, sales of Teslas manufactured in the country fell by 49% in February, per industry data, as local EV rivals such as BYD continue to put the US automaker under serious pressure.
Tesla's share price has dropped by more than 50% since mid-December, with investors expressing concern over the worrying sales figures and the amount of time Musk is spending working on DOGE.
Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.