Hesai Group, the world’s sixth-largest maker of sensors for smart cars, aims to add cheaper and more innovative products to its line-up to overcome intensifying competition from domestic rivals and to reach bigger volumes in overseas markets.
Domestic carmakers like BYD, Li Auto and Leapmotor will become beneficiaries of a ‘consumption downgrade’ as motorists worried about the economy drift down market towards cheaper models, analysts and dealers said.
The electric car start-up has slashed the waiting time for its cars to be delivered, the latest sign that it has overcome supply chain problems and is back on track to pursue high growth in the world’s largest automotive market.
The popularity of the American giant’s cars means Nio, Xpeng and Li Auto face an uphill struggle to maintain their market share in the highly competitive market, according to some analysts.
The discounts, the first by Tesla in mainland China this year, came hot on the heels of the carmaker’s 30 per cent expansion of its Giga Shanghai assembly at the Lingang Free-Trade Area to 1 million vehicles a year.