Xpeng follows Tesla with major price cuts on China EVs

Xpeng has bowed to an intensifying price war in China’s electric-vehicle market, cutting sticker prices by as much as 13 percent after Tesla’s surprise cuts at the start of the year.

The starting price of the base model of Xpeng’s G3i SUV dropped to 148,900 yuan ($22,000) from 168,900 yuan, according to a post on the company’s official Weibo page.

P7 sedan prices were cut to 249,900 yuan, while the sticker price on the newly released G9 model stayed the same.

China is the world’s biggest EV market and an increasingly competitive battleground for international and local automakers.

After cutting prices on its popular, Chinese-made Model Y and Model 3 cars in October, Tesla followed with another round of reductions on Jan. 6.

Mercedes-Benz cut prices on two EVs by as much as $33,000 in November, while Huawei-backed Aito this week lowered them by up to 31,000 yuan.

Xpeng’s shares slumped after Tesla’s latest price cut, with Citigroup analyst Jeff Chung saying the automaker would “suffer the most” due to the impact on sales of its P7 and G7 models.

Guangzhou-based Xpeng unveiled its G9 SUV in September, hoping for a boost to sales that were impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions in China.

“We are going to further improve supply-chain management, cost control, production efficiency and customer services,” Xpeng said Tuesday, describing the price cuts as a “normal adjustment.”