Nio Inc’s ES8. Photo credit: By Jengtingchen – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia. 

By Anders Lorenzen

China’s luxury electric car maker Nio Inc has, since they launched onto the New York Stock Exchange in 2018, been labelled China’s answer to Tesla.

But the company failed to make an instant mark, struggling with volume, deliveries and deadlines, and as a result, their share price had dropped far below the initial IPO price of $6 per share. As recently as May this year their share price had fallen below $3 per share.

Strong sales figures

But on the back of a big jump in sales in June, according to the Chinese company, they sold 3,740 electric vehicles (EV) in that month alone – an increase of 179% compared to the same time last year. And in the second quarter of this year, they have delivered 10,331 EV’s. The company’s share price responded positively to this by rocketing upwards and to be trading at around $15 a share but has since stabilised at around $11.

William Bin Li, founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of NIO said: “In June, we achieved a historical high of monthly deliveries, contributing to our best quarterly performance. We are proud of our team for their strong execution from production to delivery. We remain committed to offering the best premium smart electric vehicles and the best user experience to our users.”

This development comes as other EV companies are reporting strong figures. Tesla’s share price has tripled in the last year, and in the second quarter this year, they delivered 90,000 + EV’s surpassing the estimate of 72,000 speculated by analysts. Other EV companies have also reported a surge in their share price.

While Nio caters for the luxury car market, just as Tesla did when starting out – their cheapest car would cost you above $50,000, there are signs that the company is starting to establish itself as the Chinese preferred choice to Tesla.

Nio is in many ways using Tesla’s model by offering a variety of products – and has broadened out so it is not just a car company. For instance, they have also launched Nio Power – an internet-based EV charging solution which includes battery swap. And by Nio House, they have entered the luxury and Smart House market. And not forgetting Formula E – the rapidly growing EV motorsport taking on Formula One – Nio has a racing team taking part in the lucrative tournament.

So far Nio only sells to the Chinese market.