Ukraine-induced surge in raw material costs forces Tesla to increase prices for second time in less than a week
A war-induced surge in raw material costs has continued to hit the global automotive sector, causing giants such as Tesla to increase prices.
The Austin-based car maker was forced today to increase its Chinese and US prices for the second time in a few days, following a surge in the cost of aluminium, palladium and nickel.
Tesla reported a surge in prices between 5 and 10 per cent for all its US models, while in China Model 3 and Model Y went up by 5 per cent.
“Tesla and Space X are seeing a significant recent inflation pressure in raw materials and logistics,” the billionaire tweeted yesterday. “And we are not alone.”
The price of raw materials such as aluminium, palladium and nickel have increased dramatically following the Kremlin’s decision to invade Ukraine, City A.M. reported.
In the last month, aluminium reached $3,984 while nickel and palladium went up to $48,241 and $3,178 respectively.
Tesla has bought significant quantities of aluminium from Russian giant Rusal, whose founder Oleg Deripaska features among the oligarchs sanctioned by the UK, CNBC reported on Monday.