STOCKHOLM, Jan 9 (Reuters) – Electric carmaker Polestar reported on Friday that car sales rose sharply in the fourth quarter, helped by its recent strategy to focus on Europe.
The company’s fourth-quarter sales rose 27% to 15,608 vehicles. 60,119 cars were sold throughout the year.
Over the last year, Polestar has become increasingly reliant on Europe, which now accounts for about 78% of its sales, as U.S. demand weakens due to tariffs, the expiration of electric vehicle tax credits and increased competition.
Polestar has also scaled back its emphasis on online direct-to-consumer sales in favor of a traditional dealer-led model and expanded its sales network, even as it closed 30 of its retail sites in China.
U.S. tariffs have hurt the automaker’s profit margins, forcing it to restructure its supply chain and shift production to Europe.
Polestar CEO Michael Lohscheller said: “2025 is Polestar’s best year ever in terms of retail volumes, despite continued external headwinds and challenging market conditions.”
A high debt load, continued losses, and financial difficulties also contributed to the weakness in the stock price, prompting the company to avoid a Nasdaq delisting through a reverse stock split, mechanically boosting the stock price from less than $1 to $18.
Polestar relies heavily on Chinese automaker and majority shareholder Geely Holding to fund its loss-making operations. In December, the company reached new financing and loan agreements of up to $900 million with Geely and two European banks.
Like Geely-owned Swedish carmaker Volvo Cars, Polestar has increasingly relied on the Chinese group’s platforms and supply chains to cut costs, reduce development spending and improve efficiency.
Polestar said it plans to provide a key product update and financial outlook on February 18.
(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru and Marie Mannes in Stockholm; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)
