Tesla Overcomes Semiconductor Shortage with 50% Revenue Increase in Q3

Better-than-expected Wall Street earnings... Record-high customer deliveries

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Despite the global semiconductor chip supply shortage, US electric vehicle company Tesla achieved better-than-expected strong performance in the third quarter.

On the 20th (local time), Tesla announced in its Q3 earnings report that its revenue reached $13.76 billion (approximately 16.168 trillion KRW), an increase of more than 50% compared to the same period last year ($8.77 billion).

This exceeded Wall Street analysts' expectations of $13.63 billion, compiled by financial information firm Refinitiv.

During the same period, quarterly net profit was $1.62 billion, surpassing $1 billion for two consecutive quarters. This represents nearly a fourfold (389%) increase compared to the same period last year ($331 million).

Despite adverse factors such as the global semiconductor chip shortage and rising raw material prices, Tesla set a record exceeding Wall Street expectations, CNBC reported. Tesla has been on a streak of record-breaking revenue for six consecutive quarters since Q2 last year.

Tesla reported delivering 241,300 vehicles to customers worldwide and producing 237,823 new cars in Q3.

The Q3 delivery performance surpassed the previous record set in Q2 (201,250 vehicles). However, production slightly decreased compared to the previous quarter (206,421 vehicles).

In its earnings report, Tesla stated, "Various issues such as semiconductor shortages, port congestion, and power outages are affecting factory operating rates," adding, "We plan to continue operating production lines at maximum capacity as conditions allow."

It further added, "While performance growth is our goal, the scale of growth is determined by external factors."

Earlier, Tesla CEO Elon Musk warned of cost pressures, saying, "Handling supply chain issues is very costly."