Chinese automaker BYD saw its vehicle sales increase by 58% in the first three months of the year, presenting a stark contrast to the ongoing decline in demand for Tesla’s electric vehicles across Europe.

The Shenzhen-based group announced on Tuesday that it delivered 986,098 passenger vehicles in the first quarter. Of these, 416,388 were pure electric vehicles, marking a 39% increase. Enjoying a strong start to the year, BYD’s annual sales surpassed $100 billion for the first time, boosted by a resurgence in demand for hybrid vehicles within its domestic market.

Meanwhile, analysts have issued warnings that Tesla’s first-quarter deliveries, anticipated this week, are likely to show a decline exceeding 10%. This prediction comes as sales in France and other key European markets continued to fall in March, even following a significant model update.

Norway offered a glimmer of hope. The new Model Y, launched in the first week of March, reclaimed its position as the country’s best-selling car after experiencing two months of sharp decline. Vehicle registrations in Norway recovered substantially following a 48% drop in February, decreasing by only 1% to 2,211 vehicles in March.

Tesla began delivering the upgraded Model Y, its most popular model, in China at the end of February and rolled it out across Europe starting in early March. Despite this, official data released on Tuesday revealed that new car sales in France plummeted by 37% year-on-year in March, down to 3,157 vehicles. Similarly, sales in Sweden experienced a significant drop of 64%, falling to just 911 units.

Tesla sales have faced a considerable downturn in Europe since the start of the year. According to the Financial Times, analysts remain divided on the primary cause, debating whether the slump stems mainly from public reaction to CEO Elon Musk’s pronounced involvement in regional politics or from an aging product lineup.

Even before the release of March’s sales figures, analysts were already revising down their forecasts for Tesla’s first-quarter deliveries, which are typically announced around the second day of April.

Last week, Deutsche Bank reduced its forecast by approximately 50,000 vehicles, bringing the estimate down to 345,000 units. This figure represents an 11% decrease compared to the same period last year. In contrast, RBC Capital Markets anticipates deliveries reaching 364,000 units.

In a note, Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu remarked, “Beyond the numbers, we feel that there has been some brand damage in Western Europe and pockets of the US or Canada due to Elon Musk’s political activities, which is hurting demand.”

Tesla vehicles and dealerships have reportedly become targets of protests in both the US and Europe. This follows Musk’s unprecedented engagement in European political discourse and perceptions of his significant influence within the White House sphere.

Many believe Tesla is well-positioned among automakers to navigate potential tariff conflicts initiated by Donald Trump, largely due to its substantial manufacturing presence in America. Nevertheless, the company remains exposed to risks, as it sources a portion of its vehicle components from international suppliers outside the US.

The company recently issued a warning, suggesting that Trump’s proposed tariffs could potentially trigger retaliatory tariffs against the US. Such a scenario could increase the cost of manufacturing vehicles within America, impacting Tesla’s operations.

A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to preserve chats conducted by senior officials via the Signal messaging app, including messages mistakenly shared with a reporter earlier this month concerning an imminent military operation in Yemen.

US District Judge James Boasberg issued the ruling on Thursday at the request of a transparency group that sued, alleging the app’s auto-delete function risked destroying the messages in violation of the Federal Records Act.

During a brief afternoon hearing, Justice Department lawyer Amber Richer told Boasberg such an order was unnecessary because the relevant agencies were already taking steps to preserve the records. However, she did not object to the judge reinforcing this with a court order.

“We are still in the process of working with the agencies to determine what records they have, but we are also working with the agencies to preserve the records they do possess,” Richer said.

However, the government lawyer appeared to acknowledge a court filing made earlier in the day by a Treasury Department official, which suggested that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent currently possesses only a portion of the message chain related to the Yemen strike.

The journalist added to the message chain, The Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg, reported that the chat began on March 11. Yet, Bessent only has messages starting from the afternoon of March 15. It remains unclear why Bessent failed to preserve the earlier messages or whether other senior officials in the chat retained them.

Richer stated to Boasberg, “I want to note that we are still determining what records the agencies possess.”

The Atlantic published parts of the messages earlier this week and the remainder on Wednesday after the White House stated it did not consider the exchanges classified, even though they described the scope and timeline of a military operation that had not yet occurred.

According to The Atlantic‘s report, national security adviser Mike Waltz, who initiated the exchange, had initially set the messages to auto-delete after one week but later changed the duration to four weeks.

Speaking from the bench, Boasberg ordered the defendants in the case—Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe—”to preserve all Signal communications between March 11 and March 15.”

This directive appears broader than just the messages shared with Goldberg; it could encompass other Signal messages sent or received by the officials during that period.

A Pentagon lawyer also submitted a written declaration stating the Defense Department was attempting to preserve these records as well but did not claim any records had been recovered. The administration suggested that The Atlantic‘s publication of the entire exchange, except for the redaction of a CIA officer’s name, ensured the messages’ preservation.

At the start of the hearing, Boasberg also responded to a social media post by President Donald Trump suggesting the judge had improperly gained control of the politically sensitive case.

Trump had called it “shameful” that the judge, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, was handling multiple legal cases involving the White House in recent weeks. In addition to the Signal case, Boasberg is presiding over a case involving Trump’s efforts to rapidly deport people using the Alien Enemies Act.

Boasberg addressed the matter, stating he “understood some questions had been raised” about how the court assigns cases. He explained that for the 15 active judges serving on the court, cases are randomly assigned across various categories in nearly all instances “to ensure a more even distribution of cases.”

Clerks use an electronic deck of cards within each category to determine which judge receives a newly filed case.

“That is how it works, and that is how all cases continue to be assigned in this court,” said Boasberg, who has served as the court’s chief judge since 2023.

US President Donald Trump announced that a 25% customs tariff will be applied to cars imported into the US.

Effective from April 2, the taxes also include car parts not produced in the US.

The President stated that the tariffs will be “permanent,” adding that there is nothing that would necessitate the removal of the import taxes.

Trump told reporters, “We will apply a 25% customs duty, but if you produce your car in the US, there is no customs duty. This means that many foreign car companies will be in a very good position because they have already established their facilities in the US.”

In a fact sheet released after Trump’s remarks in the Oval Office, the White House stated that car parts compliant with the US-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade agreement would remain exempt from customs duties “until Customs and Border Protection establishes a process to apply customs duties to their content outside the US.”

The US International Trade Commission examined in early 2024 the potential consequences if the government implemented comprehensive automotive tariffs. According to the report, a 25% customs duty applied to all US car imports would reduce imports by approximately 74% and increase average car prices by 5%.

Although President Trump’s increase in customs duties on imported vehicles will primarily affect foreign automakers, domestic automakers General Motors and Ford will also face a significant impact.

According to research by Wards Automotive and Barclays, Volvo (13%), Mazda (19%), and Volkswagen (21%) produce the lowest share of their vehicles sold in the US within the country.

Hyundai-Kia (33%), Mercedes (43%), BMW (48%), and Toyota (48%) also produce less than half of the vehicles they sell in the US domestically.

According to the Department of Transportation, examples of significant 2025 models imported into the US include the Ford Maverick pickup, Chevrolet Blazer crossover, Hyundai Venue crossover, Nissan Sentra compact car, Porsche 911 sports car, and Toyota Prius hybrid.

Approximately 45% of vehicles sold in the US are imported, with the largest share originating from Mexico and Canada.

According to data from the American Automobile Labeling Act, every 2025 model year vehicle sources at least 20% of its content from countries outside the US and Canada.