XPeng’s X9 Van Begins European Sales Amid EU Tariff Threat and Stock’s 31% Slide

The Chinese electric-vehicle maker’s flagship van, the X9, rolls out today in seven European markets, including Germany. The launch is backed by an impressive real-world performance: in a recent Norway test, the model beat 24 rivals by covering 646 kilometres on a single charge — well above its official WLTP rating — and juicing its battery from 10 to 80 percent in just 13 minutes.

Yet the operational momentum stands in stark contrast to the stock’s direction. XPeng’s shares hit a fresh 52-week low of €11.84 on Tuesday, before recovering slightly to €12.04. That still represents a daily loss of around 4 percent and brings the year-to-date decline to 31 percent. The wide gap between the current price and the 200-day moving average underscores the severity of the downtrend. With a relative strength index of 31.8, the stock is now flirting with oversold territory.

Vice-chairman Brian Gu is steering a deliberate course away from the price warfare that has gripped China’s EV sector. He has explicitly ruled out a “brutal” price battle in Europe, arguing that buyers in developed markets prioritise quality and technological differentiation over sheer cost savings. That strategy is partly dictated by politics: the European Union is drafting legislation that would require 70 percent local content in components for any manufacturer to qualify for state subsidies. XPeng is already shouldering additional EU tariffs of roughly 21 percent on imported vehicles.

To sidestep those barriers, the company has been localising production. Since last September, contract manufacturer Magna Steyr has been assembling XPeng’s SUV models in Graz, Austria, avoiding the steep import duties. A newly established research centre in Munich is meanwhile tailoring vehicles to European safety standards.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying XPeng?

The financial picture is mixed. First-quarter gross margin climbed to a robust 20.6 percent, but XPeng still posted an adjusted net loss of 1.69 billion renminbi as it plows capital into autonomous-driving technology and European infrastructure. Analysts remain broadly bullish. Bank of America and Daiwa both rate the stock a buy with a $25 price target, and Macquarie recently upgraded to “outperform” with a $19 target. Daiwa’s team expects overseas revenue to account for more than 20 percent of total sales in the current quarter, propelled by the latest European push.

On the product side, XPeng’s technological ambitions extend beyond its own models. The proprietary Turing chip, touted as extremely powerful, appears not only in XPeng vehicles but also, through a strategic partnership, in the Volkswagen ID.UNYX. The company’s May international deliveries hit 6,503 units, an 80 percent jump from a year earlier.

Technically, the share price may find near-term support if Tuesday’s low holds. Meanwhile, XPeng is pressing ahead with its retail expansion: it aims to have 120 sales points in Germany alone by the end of this year. Whether that infrastructure can convert test-track triumphs into enough sales to lift the stock remains the open question.