Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) is on watch Thursday after data from the China Passenger Car Association indicated the electric vehicle maker sold 64,285 China-made electric vehicles during the month of July. While the EV tally was up 128% from a year ago when the Shanghai Gigafactory was being upgraded for a few weeks, the level of production was down 31% from June and was the lowest for 2023. 

By comparison, BYD Company Limited (OTCPK:BYDDF) reported a 61% year-on-year rise in July sales to 261,105 passenger vehicles, including 18,169 that were exported. During the month of July, Nio (NIO) reported deliveries of 20,462 (+91% month-over-month), Li Auto (LI) reported deliveries of 34,134 (+5% M/M), and XPeng (XPEV) reported deliveries of 11,008 (+28% M/M). 

The monthly sales and deliveries reports in China are being closely watched to see how consumers react to the recent drop in prices. There has also been a boost of support from Beijing. On June 21, the Ministry of Finance announced that electric vehicle buyers will continue to be exempt from a purchase tax in 2024 and 2025. 

In separate Tesla (TSLA) news on Thursday, the company faces a class action lawsuit in California over its electric vehicle range claims. The suit accuses Tesla (TSLA) of falsely advertising the estimated driving ranges of electric vehicles sold in the state. 

Shares of Tesla (TSLA) trickled down 0.65% in premarket trading on Thursday. XPeng (XPEV) was 0.17% lower, while Li Auto (LI) rallied 1.77% and Nio (NIO) jumped 3.57%.