Table of Contents
Tesla’s stock price has decreased more than 40% since January. Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has lost $121 billion in the last three months.
Tesla’s sales are down around the world. Tesla’s global sales dropped last year, and this year is not starting well. Experts at some large banks have lowered their predictions of Tesla sales.
In China, Tesla is having trouble competing with other car companies. Last month, Tesla’s sales in China dropped 49% from last year. Sales in Europe are also down, especially in Germany. People in Germany are upset about Musk’s support of a political party. Sales in Germany fell by 76% last month compared to last year.
More bad news came from China. The Chinese car company BYD made a new charging system. Their cars can now get 400 km of driving range in just five minutes. This is twice as fast as Tesla’s charging.
Tesla recently offered a free month of its self-driving software in China, trying to get more customers.
Tesla is still the top-selling EV in the United States, but other companies are catching up.
Some experts who used to support Tesla are now worried. They say that people are losing patience with Musk. There is also a movement against Musk in the US because many people do not like what he says or his actions inside the US government.
Tesla used to be a leading company with a popular product. Now, Tesla is not the best, and Musk is busy with other projects.
Vocabulary
- Stock price – the value or cost of one share of a company’s stock in the financial market; the price of one small piece of a company that can be bought in a stock market like “the New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street”; stock price goes up and down depending on how well the company is doing
- CEO (Chief Executive officer) – the top person in a large company; president; boss
- Billion – 1,000,000,000 = one-billion
- Sales – How many things a company sells; the total number of things sold
- Around the world – worldwide; in many places in the world; in many countries
- Global – related to the whole world; everywhere in the world; 🌍
- Drop – to decrease; to go down; to become less
- Expert – a person with a lot of knowledge and experience in a trade, job or profession
- Prediction – A statement or guess about what will happen in the future; to say what you think will happen
- Compete – to try to be better than others business or people in a particular activity or market
- Especially – to show that something is greater or more important than other things; particularly; notably; specifically; for the most part
- Upset – Feeling sad, angry, or disappointed about something
- Political – Related to government or public affairs; related to politics and the workings of a country
- Party – A group of people with similar ideas who want to run the government; A group of people who work together in politics
- Fall – To go down; to decrease
- Compare – To look at two or more things and see how they are similar or different
- Charging system – A way to put power into something, like a car; a machine to put power/electricity into something
- Range – The distance a vehicle can travel on a single amount of fuel or electricity; How far something can go
- Twice as fast as – double the speed; 2X faster, 100% faster
- Offer – to provide; to supply; to propose; to make something available for sale or use; to suggest
- Self-driving – a car that can travel or move without a human driver
- Software – Programs or applications that are installed on a computer or smartphone (e.g., Microsoft Office is software, Safari web browser is software)
- Top-selling – The thing that sells the most
- Electric vehicle (EV) – A car that runs only on electricity ⚡, not gasoline.
- Catch up – to reach the same level or standard as someone or something else
- Used to – Refers to something that happened regularly in the past but doesn’t happen anymore; in the past
- Worried – Feeling nervous or concerned
- Patience – Being able to wait calmly
- Movement – a group of people working together to achieve a common goal or to make a particular change
- Government – the group of people who have the authority to make and enforce laws and manage a country or region; the people/group that manage and operate a country
- Leading – the most important or best
Quiz
Discussion Questions
- What do you think Tesla needs to do to compete better with other EV companies?
- Do you think BYD’s new charging system will affect Tesla’s sales in the future?
- Do you trust self-driving cars yet? Have you been in one?
- Do you think that public opinion of a CEO impacts the sales of a company?
- English teachers looking for teaching ideas, check out my post on using easy news articles for lessons.
- English learners looking for study ideas, check out my post on using news stories for English practice.
Original Story
Fill-in-the-Blank Listening Practice
Tesla’s stock _____ has decreased more than 40% since January. Elon Musk, _____ CEO of Tesla, has lost $121 billion in the last three _____ .
Tesla’s sales are down _____ the world. Tesla’s global sales dropped last year, and this _____ is not starting well. Experts at some large banks _____ lowered their predictions of Tesla sales.
In China, Tesla _____ having trouble competing with other car _____ . Last month, Tesla’s sales in China dropped _____ % from last year. Sales in Europe are also down, _____ in Germany. People in Germany are upset about Musk’s _____ of a political party. Sales in Germany fell by _____ % last month compared to last year.
More bad news _____ from China. The Chinese car company BYD made a new charging _____ . Their cars can now get 400 km of _____ range in just five minutes. This is twice as _____ as Tesla’s charging.
Tesla recently offered a _____ month of its self-driving software in China, trying to get _____ customers.
Tesla is still the top-selling EV _____ the United States, but other companies are catching _____ .
Some experts who used to _____ Tesla are now worried. They say that people are _____ patience with Musk. There is also a movement against Musk in the _____ because many people do not like what he says or his actions _____ the government.
Tesla used to be a leading company with a _____ product. Now, Tesla is not the best, and Musk is _____ with other projects.
