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According to media reports, the production line transformation plan launched by Tesla's Shanghai factory in July is nearing completion. Among them, the second phase of the production line responsible for the production of Model Y was completed on July 16, and the first phase of the production line for the production of Model 3 began on July 17 and is expected to be completed on August 7. After the completion of the transformation, the output of the first phase of the production line per day and shift may reach 500-600 vehicles. At present, Tesla has resumed the three-shift production mode, and the daily output of Model 3 will reach 1000-1200 vehicles, while the Model Y production line that has completed the transformation has already climbed to 2000 vehicles per day in a week, and the output will reach about 2200 vehicles per day next month. For comparison, the total daily output of Tesla Shanghai Super Factory before the transformation was about 2500 vehicles.

As we all know, the Shanghai factory is of great significance to Tesla. It is Tesla's first manufacturing plant in China and the third super factory in the world. It is also China's first electric car factory wholly owned by a foreign carmaker. The plant is mainly used to produce Model 3 and Model Y. of the 936000 electric vehicles delivered by Tesla to the world in 2021, 484000 came from the Shanghai factory, of which 321000 of the 484000 electric vehicles were sold in China, and the remaining 163000 were exported to more than 10 countries, including Japan and Europe. In 2022, Q1 Tesla produced 305000 electric vehicles worldwide, of which 182000 were produced by the Shanghai factory, with an average monthly production capacity of 60, 000. However, since March, affected by the Shanghai epidemic, the Shanghai factory has stopped production for as long as half a month, resulting in factory shutdowns, tight supply chains, disrupted logistics, and shortages of chips and auto parts. Tesla's performance hit rock bottom in the second quarter. However, at present, Tesla's Shanghai factory has been revived with full blood. According to data released by Tesla, a total of 565000 new cars were delivered worldwide in the first half of 2022, of which 295000 were from Tesla China, 198000 of these 295000 electric vehicles were delivered to China, and the remaining 97000 were mainly sold to Japan, Europe and other countries.

At present, Tesla is not short of orders, and production capacity limits Tesla's delivery time. According to Tesla's website, the delivery time of Model 3 is expected to be 16-20 weeks, and the delivery time of each version of Model Y varies from 10-14 weeks to 20-24 weeks for the standard, 20-24 weeks for the long-lasting version, and 16-20 weeks for the high-performance version. In other words, users will have to wait at least 5 months to pick up the car after placing an order.

Tesla plans to suspend most production at his Shanghai plant in the first two weeks of July because of upgrades, Reuters and other media reported on June 22nd. After the upgrade is completed, Tesla plans to bring the plant's production capacity to a new record by the end of July, close to the target of 22000 vehicles a week. However, the relevant person in charge of Tesla China did not admit the authenticity of the news.

On July 21, Tesla released financial data for the second quarter of 2022, although revenue and net profit increased compared with the same period last year, but the growth rate slowed significantly, and declined month-on-month. According to the data, Tesla earned $16.934 billion in revenue in the second quarter, up 42 per cent from a year earlier and down 10 per cent from a month earlier (revenue in the first quarter was $18.756 billion, up 81 per cent from a year earlier). Net profit was $2.259 billion, up 98 per cent from a year earlier and down 32 per cent from a month earlier (first-quarter net profit was $3.318 billion, up 658 per cent from a year earlier).

Foreign media pointed out that in the seemingly scenic answer paper, Tesla's "halo" is fading. Of course, Tesla's "bad" performance in the second quarter is likely to be affected by the market, including the reduction of production, the supply of spare parts and the rise in the price of raw materials. Therefore, the answer will be given in the next two quarters whether Tesla's "halo" has faded.

However, the current situation of Tesla is really not optimistic. As early as June, Mr Musk warned that he "feels very bad" about the economy and that Tesla needs to cut about 10 per cent of staff and suspend global hiring. Next, the news of Tesla's layoffs around the world continued to spread. Since mid-June, some Tesla software engineers in California have been laid off one after another on the grounds of poor performance. On July 15, Tesla decided to lay off 229 employees in San Mateo, Calif., and permanently close an office in the area, which is part of a very important autopilot assistance department.

In addition, Tesla also began to have a financial crisis. According to Tesla's financial report, its free cash flow is only $621 million, down about 70 per cent from $2.2 billion in the first quarter. The results show that Tesla also faces practical problems that plague traditional carmakers, as well as worrying financial conditions. To that end, Tesla sold 75 per cent of its Bitcoin holdings, adding $936 million in cash to his balance sheet. Musk explained that Bitcoin was sold in large quantities because the company faced uncertainty related to epidemic prevention and control measures. In this case, it is important to maximize the company's cash reserves.

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