Key facts
- Tesla registrations rose 248% in Sweden, 131% in Norway and 34% in Denmark in October.
- Norway recorded Tesla's best October on record, with the brand holding a 9.8% market share.
- Chinese brands took a record 22.5% of new passenger car registrations in Norway.
- Tesla's market share in Denmark was 0.73%, behind BYD, Leapmotor, Xpeng and MG.
- Tesla said it ended the third quarter with its largest order backlog in four years.
Registrations of new Tesla vehicles climbed across several Northern European markets in October, extending a regional sales recovery even as Chinese automakers expanded their presence, according to data from Mobility Sweden, Norway's OFV and Denmark's bilstatistik.dk.
The gains were steepest in Sweden, where Tesla registrations rose 248%, followed by a 131% increase in Norway and 34% in Denmark. The rebound was helped by easier year-ago comparisons, higher fuel prices, government incentives and continued growth in electric vehicle demand.
Norway delivered Tesla's best October on record and made it the country's top-selling car brand with a 9.8% market share, the OFV data showed. Chinese brands also continued to grow, taking 22.5% of new passenger car registrations, their highest monthly share on record. "Especially in Norway people are generally more affluent than elsewhere in Europe, people are less seeking the lower offerings of Chinese brands than in other European countries," said Rico Luman, senior economist at ING Research.
Performance was uneven across the region. In Denmark, Tesla's market share was just 0.73%, behind BYD, Leapmotor, Xpeng and SAIC-owned MG, each of which captured between 1.6% and 5.5% of the market. Industry analyst Felipe Munoz, who runs the Car Industry Analysis platform, said: "Northern Europe is quite open to the new players as long as they are efficient EVs. That's what allowed Tesla to get to a leading position and it's what is allowing the Chinese to gain ground fast."
Tesla remains one of Europe's strongest EV brands, but its reliance on the Model 3 and Model Y has left it exposed to rivals with broader line-ups. The automaker said in October that it had ended the third quarter with its largest passenger vehicle order backlog in four years.