Nio Lowers Q3 Forecast After August Deliveries Plunge Amid Supply Chain Disruptions

Chinese EV startup NIO Inc. NIO reported Wednesday a month-over-month drop in August's vehicle deliveries and trimmed its third-quarter deliveries outlook. The company attributed supply chain disruptions for the soft August numbers and the tempered third-quarter forecast.

Signaling strong demand for its vehicles, the company said its new orders were are at a record in August.

What Happened: Nio reported August deliveries of 5,880 vehicles, comprising 1,738 ES8s, 2,342 ES6s, and 1,800 EC6s, representing a 48.3% year-over-year growth but a 25.9% drop from July.

In July, the company sold 7,931 vehicles. For the year-to-date period, Nio clocked deliveries of 131,408 vehicles.

Related Link: How Nio's Norway Market Entry Is Unfolding

Nio, however, noted that the company's new orders hit an all-time high in August, thanks to increasing demand.

The company attributed the softness to material disruption in the supply chain, resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic in certain areas in China and Malaysia. "Supply chain disruptions in Malaysia and Nanjing, China caused by local pandemic outbreaks significantly hampered production," the company said in an emailed statement.

Nio said that its A/B pillar interior trims supplier in Nanjing, China, was affected in August. Since then, the supplier has resumed production, it added.

Nio Trims Q3 Deliveries Forecast: Nio lowered its third-quarter deliveries guidance from 23,000-25,000 units to 22,500-23,500 units. The company blamed the predicament on continued uncertainty and volatility of semiconductor supply.

Incidentally, in late March, Nio was forced to cut first-quarter deliveries forecast and stop production for a few days due to chip shortage. Among peers, Li Auto, Inc. LI reported record August deliveries of 9,433 Li ONEs.

Price Action: In premarket trading Wednesday, Nio shares were down 4.48% at $37.55.

Related Link: EV Stock 2021 Halftime Scorecard: Tesla Bogged Down By China Worries, Nio Underperforms, And More

Photo by Company