Tesla's $56K India Gamble: Will the Model Y Sell in a Price-Sensitive Market?
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) is finally hitting the accelerator in India. After years of back-and-forth, the EV giant is opening its first showroom in Mumbai this July, followed by another in New Delhi. It's starting with the Model Yshipped straight from its Shanghai plantmarking the company's first official sales push into the world's third-largest car market. Internal documents and people familiar with the matter confirm that Tesla has also brought in Supercharger hardware, car accessories, and parts from the US, China, and the Netherlandslaying the groundwork for a broader rollout.
This move follows Elon Musk's February meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and could signal the start of a long-term India strategy. But it won't be an easy ride. Each Model Y imported was declared at just under $32,000, but racked up over $25,000 in import duties due to India's 70% tariff on fully-built EVs. Final sticker price? North of $56,000 before tax and insurancenearly 50% more than the U.S. price post-incentives. For a market where EVs still make up just 5% of new car sales and luxury vehicles are under 2%, Tesla will need more than brand power to spark volume.
Still, the company is quietly building momentum. It's securing warehouse space in Karnataka and Gurugram, boosting hiring across charging, retail, and policy teams, and sending execs from abroad to oversee showroom setup in luxury districts. The early signs point to a premium positioning play aimed at affluent Indian buyers. Whether that strategy holdsor pivotswill depend on how fast Tesla can shift from imports to local production. For now, it's a high-stakes, high-margin experiment in one of the world's fastest-growing auto markets.
This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Tesla Is Set To Report Deliveries Wednesday. Here's What To Expect.
Tesla is expected to report second-quarter deliveries data Wednesday, with analysts anticipating another year-over-year decline. Demand has slowed this year amid pushback against CEO Elon Musk's involvement with the Trump administration. Some analysts have said the second quarter could be a low point for Tesla's deliveries before improving later in the (TSLA) is widely expected to report quarterly delivery numbers on Wednesday morning, with analysts anticipating another double-digit decline year-over-year. The company is projected to post deliveries of just under 400,000 vehicles for the second quarter, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. That would be down 10% from the same time a year ago, when Tesla reported north of 440,000 deliveries, while production is forecast to increase to about 434,200 vehicles from 410,831 in the year-ago quarter. Demand for Tesla's vehicles has taken a hit this year in key markets like the U.S. and Europe amid a political backlash against CEO Elon Musk's involvement with the Trump administration. The company's first-quarter deliveries fell well below estimates. The latest deliveries data also comes days after the departure of Omead Afshar, who oversaw Tesla's sales and manufacturing in North America and Europe, and became the latest in a string of executive departures, Bloomberg reported. Analysts from Deepwater Asset Management said in a recent report that they expect the second quarter could be the low point for Tesla's delivery numbers, with a recovery likely in the second half of the year, citing improving brand perception among other things. Analysts from RBC Capital Markets on Thursday forecast about 366,000 deliveries, below the Street consensus, suggesting demand could be delayed with some consumers waiting for the more affordable model Musk has said would launch in the first half of this year. Baird analysts, who said the more affordable model may be delayed, told clients Wednesday that "while deliveries still remain an important piece of the fundamentals, we note that the recent launch of robotaxi and excitement regarding this opportunity will likely take precedence in the near term." Tesla's stock has divided analysts tracked by Visible Alpha, with 10 "buy" ratings compared to four "hold," and four "sell" ratings. Their price targets range from $160 to $500, with an average near $306, below the stock's recent levels. The shares have lost about a fifth of their value in 2025 so far, at just over $323 as of Friday's close. Read the original article on Investopedia Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Wells Fargo Says To Avoid This Investment and Buy US Stocks Instead — Should You Invest?
In a recent note to investors, Wells Fargo analysts mentioned that they recommended avoiding emerging market equities right now. Trending Now: Read Next: Since the massive bank holds a weighty opinion, it's worth digging into their suggestion. GOBankingRates unpacks Wells Fargo's recommendation and what that means for your portfolio. Investing in emerging markets allows investors to diversify their portfolio beyond U.S. stocks. While you can target specific emerging markets, like India or Indonesia, opting to purchase an index fund focused on a broad swath of emerging markets can give you some exposure across multiple economies with minimal effort on your part. For example, the MSCI Emerging Markets index offers a popular way for U.S.-based investors to add exposure to emerging markets to their portfolio. In the last year, the MSCI Emerging Market Index saw a net return of 13.04%, which is significantly higher than the S&P 500, which saw a slight decline. While you might think that the outperformance of the MSCI Emerging Market Index over the S&P 500 would warrant investing more heavily in emerging markets, the opposite is true in Wells Fargo's opinion. Since the MSCI Emerging Market Index did so well in the last year, the analysts recognize that many investors who had invested in emerging markets will have seen their portfolio's composition change over the last year, with perhaps more weight in emerging markets than they would like. Explore More: The possible portfolio imbalance, with too much money invested in emerging markets and not enough in U.S. stocks, could represent a problem for some investors. Additionally, Wells Fargo remains unconvinced it's a good idea to stay so heavily weighted in favor of emerging markets. The note pointed to the structural risks of emerging markets, including 'political and economic instability, corporate governance concerns, variable regulatory risks, as well as China's excessive debt, slumping property sector, and slowing growth.' All of this to say, Wells Fargo's note encouraged investors to rebalance their portfolios more heavily toward U.S. stocks instead of emerging markets. In the statement, Wells Fargo said, 'we favor reallocating to U.S. Large Cap, U.S. Mid Cap, or Developed Market (DM) ex-U.S. Equities to maintain overall equity exposure.' Investors heavily weighted toward emerging markets might sell off some of those investments in order to purchase U.S. stocks. For example, you might sell some of your stake in the MSCI Emerging Markets index in order to buy more in a fund tied to the S&P 500. If building and managing your own investment portfolio, the right strategy varies based on your interests, skill level and time commitment. For investors with significant time and the patience to monitor the constant turns of the stock market, actively managing it could be a good idea. But if you are looking for a more hands-off approach with a long-term vision in mind, consider buying and holding low-cost index funds. As you buy and hold index funds for the long term, you can make big-picture changes to your portfolio, like adjusting toward or away from emerging markets occasionally. But, in general, you'll allow the investments to hopefully grow in value over the long term. Wells Fargo is suggesting that investors shift away from emerging markets toward U.S. stocks. For some investors, the shift could make sense. For others, following through on this change wouldn't align with their investment goals. Take the time to decide what's best for your situation before making any changes to your portfolio. More From GOBankingRates 10 Cars That Outlast the Average Vehicle This article originally appeared on Wells Fargo Says To Avoid This Investment and Buy US Stocks Instead — Should You Invest? Inicia sesión para acceder a tu portafolio
Hamilton Spectator
43 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Tesla Cybertruck has a bad rap. So she gave hers a peach of a wrap
Christel Virag knows her main vehicle is one some people love to hate, whether it's due to its futuristic appearance, or because its creator, Elon Musk, is a highly polarizing figure. In her eyes, her 2024 Tesla Cybertruck is just peachy … the same colour the vehicle's stainless-steel body is wrapped in. Although Virag, who lives with her family in Georgetown, also has a Cadillac Escalade and a Lamborghini Aventador, the angular Cybertruck is the vehicle she gravitates to. 'I grew up in a single-parent, low-income home, and I didn't even know what a Lamborghini or Bentley was. I wasn't into cars. About nine years ago, my husband and I had a Range Rover that had been wrapped. I was pregnant with our first child. I have a background in marketing and we were getting so many compliments on the Range Rover and its wrap, that we took a risk and opened our own vehicle wrap business ( as a small shop in 2016. Fast forward to 2025 and we have headquarters in Mississauga and 15 locations, including in Florida and South Africa. We have a saying that if you want to wrap Teslas, you need to own one. The business has a fleet of 10 to 15 of (the) cars, in different categories, for that reason. I ordered the Cybertruck two-and-a-half years ago online with a $250-deposit, and was on a waiting list for two years. I got it in January 2025, straight from the dealership. It was a brand-new car, and, because it's considered a commercial vehicle, I didn't have to pay luxury tax on it. (A federal luxury tax that normally applies to vehicles costing more than $100,000; the Cybertruck's weight of 4,000 kg puts it above the weight threshold for the tax). It looks like something from outer space. I've never had an electric car before. It's practical because it's a pickup truck. I have three kids who have bicycles and play hockey and rep soccer, and it has plenty of room to stow their stuff. It's similar to all the other Teslas, with a tiny half steering wheel and no shifter. Everything is on a screen, telling you if it's in reverse or whether it's low on windshield wiper fluid, for example. The mirror, itself, is on the screen. It's still a learning curve. It has automatic brakes and will slow itself down, and when I switch to another vehicle, I have to remember to use the brakes. It's almost like driving a spaceship. You push the gas and then it jolts forward, but it's so smooth. You don't hear the engine. It's incredible that something that's so big and so heavy is so quiet and feels so smooth. It's like you're flying on a cloud. (The Cybertruck reportedly can go from zero to 100 km/h in 2.7 seconds). I don't drive it fast, though. The car I drive is often determined by how many children I have that day. The Cybertruck has five seats, and it's so spacious, even though it looks small from the outside. In the back seat, the children have their own screen, with Netflix, YouTube and games. The car has a microphone you can use to talk to someone outside. If I take my kids to the park, I can sit in the truck and watch them play, then use the microphone and say 'OK, it's time to go,' when we have to leave. The Cybertruck was the typical stainless-steel exterior when I got it in January, but now It's got a peach wrap, including the rims, and I love it. It's my first electric truck. I don't love my Escalade, and, although I love my Aventador, the more practical car is the Cybertruck. I drive it 90 per cent of the time. I love that it's fully electric and I can charge it, and that it's so super safe. There are no blind spots, because there are so many cameras and warnings if vehicles are too close in front or behind you. It does all kinds of light tricks, with different themes for different holidays, and you can put on a light show with music for different occasions. You can sync two Cybertrucks together to do a light-and-sound show, and we've done that, as I have the pink one and my husband has a blue one. All of my cars are some shade of pink. The Escalade is pink, the Lamborghini is faded pink. My seven-year-old daughter loves it. The Cybertruck is so weird looking, people either love or hate it. But it's a perfect driving advertisement, (both) because it is weird-looking and because of its colour. I have driven it to Ottawa to one of our business locations, and to Indiana for my sister's graduation. To be honest, I was super worried about driving to the States in it (because of the backlash against Musk and Tesla), as people seem a lot more vocal and there's been more vandalism against Teslas. But there was no problem and everyone who saw it was giving it a thumbs up. I think because it is pink, it's less hated. On a full charge, it has a range of 500 km When it's cold, I lose about 50 km, which isn't bad. The great thing is that Tesla charging stations are everywhere now, and when I was travelling to Indiana, I typed in the destination and mapped the route to include charging stations, and it told me I'd need to stay for 25 minutes to charge. We had a charger installed at home, and I plug it in and charge it overnight. I don't necessarily go cruising, as I'm always driving. I did take it and the Lamborghini to two children's fun fairs recently and let kids climb into them. I drive the Cybertruck year-round. It won't get stored for the winter. It is a super good winter car. It tells you when the road is slippery and will go into snow mode. It's trained how to drive in snow. It's 100 per cent my favourite vehicle. You can follow Christel Virag on Instagram at @christelbarbie
