Elon Musk, cisgender slur demarcator and world’s richest man, runs a little car company called Tesla. Tesla sells cars in China, where the EV market has seen months of constant price cuts as part of an ongoing war for sales numbers. But now, thanks to a letter from China’s government, that price war may be over — all in the name of socialism. Or, thanks to Musk, it may not be going anywhere.
Earlier this week, Tesla signed on to a letter from the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology alongside 15 other electric automakers. The letter directed automakers to stabilise their prices, ending the pricing war in favour of “core socialist values.” Bloomberg has a list of key points from the letter, translated to English:
Here are the translated details of the agreement, which is non-binding:
- Adhere to industry rules and regulations, regulate marketing activities, maintain fair competition and not disrupt fair competition with abnormal pricing
- Pay attention to marketing and publicity methods, not exaggerate or use false publicity to attract attention or gain new customers
- Put quality first, improve lives with high-quality products and services
- Promote core socialist values, actively fulfil social responsibilities, and take on the heavy responsibility of maintaining steady growth, strengthening confidence and preventing risks
With 16 signatures, the price war appeared to be over. Sure, the letter was technically nonbinding, but who was going to go back on their word with the Chinese government? Well, apparently, none other than Musk himself.
Today, Tesla announced new cash rebates in China for buyers of new Model 3 and Model Y cars. Sure, the bonus requires a referral from an existing Tesla owner, but it’s still another discount — breaking the spirit of the signed letter, if not its explicit text. Whether the automaker will see repercussions from this move, either from China’s government or from a reignition of the price war, remains to be seen.