April 20 (Reuters) – Tesla Inc ( TSLA.O ) raised U.S. prices for its Model S and X premium electric vehicles on Thursday, according to its website, although they are 20% lower than at the start of the year after a year. A price cut to increase demand.
Tesla has been cutting prices worldwide since January, particularly to boost volumes of its mass-market cars, the Model Y crossover and Model 3 sedan, including six times in the U.S. through Tuesday.
Tesla’s Model S Blight and Model X Blight — performance versions of those models — are now $107,490, up from $104,990, the company’s website showed.
The price of the Model X is now up roughly 2.6% to $97,490, while the price of the Model S is up roughly 2.9% to $87,490.
However, the prices of all four models are 16% to 23% lower than at the beginning of the year.
Tesla earlier this month cut prices of both the Model S and Model X by $5,000, after deliveries of the vehicles fell 38% from January to March.
Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk on Wednesday doubled down on the price war he launched late last year, saying the EV maker will prioritize sales growth over profits in a weak economy.
The company posted its lowest quarterly gross margin in two years as it cut prices sharply to boost demand and fend off rising competition in markets including the US and China.
Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley said Thursday that Tesla has pioneered a more dynamic way of pricing electric vehicles that other manufacturers should follow.
Abhinaya Vijayaraghavan reports in Bangalore; Editing by Sonia Seema
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