Had a great time in Austin, the weather was perfect and the discussion I participated in was lively with Steve Levine, editor of The Electric and Ed Kim, CEO of AutoPacific.
When I go from the Shenandoah Valley to Dulles I always stop at H-Mart, but there's also a Lotte nearby. I've not done a count, but 30% non-Asian sounds about right. NOVA (northern VA) has a huge Korean community, the first H-Mart outside NY/NJ opened there in 1997. Since it's 3.5 hrs one-way, we take coolers with us. As to Detroit, Japanese and Chinese friends in downriver Detroit claim there's no good Asian food of any sort, they have to go towards Southfield/Troy.
Separately, Tesla raised the price of the Model Y refresh, but only for the entry-level version. That's not a good sign. Now that's typical of refreshes, they stem but do not reverse sales slides and discounting. As you note, the Model 3 is discounted, with an "insurance" subsidy of RMB8,000, a charging subsidy (3 yrs at 元1 per visit), and 5 years of free money. With discounts Model 3 sales have held up, but that's post refresh. With only 2 models and 950,000 units capacity in Shanghai, and Model Y exports falling steadily for 2+ years, Tesla won't be able to maintain capacity utilization. Back to drafting another substack post (on price wars) and a Chinese EV analysis for SeekingAlpha...
When I go from the Shenandoah Valley to Dulles I always stop at H-Mart, but there's also a Lotte nearby. I've not done a count, but 30% non-Asian sounds about right. NOVA (northern VA) has a huge Korean community, the first H-Mart outside NY/NJ opened there in 1997. Since it's 3.5 hrs one-way, we take coolers with us. As to Detroit, Japanese and Chinese friends in downriver Detroit claim there's no good Asian food of any sort, they have to go towards Southfield/Troy.
Separately, Tesla raised the price of the Model Y refresh, but only for the entry-level version. That's not a good sign. Now that's typical of refreshes, they stem but do not reverse sales slides and discounting. As you note, the Model 3 is discounted, with an "insurance" subsidy of RMB8,000, a charging subsidy (3 yrs at 元1 per visit), and 5 years of free money. With discounts Model 3 sales have held up, but that's post refresh. With only 2 models and 950,000 units capacity in Shanghai, and Model Y exports falling steadily for 2+ years, Tesla won't be able to maintain capacity utilization. Back to drafting another substack post (on price wars) and a Chinese EV analysis for SeekingAlpha...
US analysts can't identify the cult brand staring them in the face......and some high profile investors are soiling their reputation.