What happened
Shares of Chinese electric-vehicle maker NIO (NIO 4.50%) were higher in early trading on Thursday, after the company's first-quarter sales came in above its guidance.
As of 10:15 a.m. EDT, NIO's American depositary shares were up about 5.2% from Wednesday's closing price.
So what
NIO said that it delivered 20,060 vehicles in March, ahead of the roughly 19,500 it had forecast when it announced a temporary production halt last week. NIO, like other automakers including Ford Motor and Toyota, has been affected by an ongoing global shortage of automotive-grade semiconductors.
Despite the production halt, which began Monday and will run through Friday, NIO was able to deliver 7,257 vehicles in March, just enough to beat its prior monthly record of 7,225 deliveries set in January.
NIO delivered 2,576 examples of its EC6, a sporty midsize electric crossover, in March. Image source: NIO.
NIO's quarterly deliveries total was in line with its earlier guidance, which had called for 20,000 to 20,500 vehicles delivered in the first quarter.
Now what
Auto investors won't have to wait long for NIO's next delivery milestone. The company said it expects to manufacture its 100,000th vehicle on April 7, after production resumes next week at its manufacturing partner's factory near NIO's home base in Hefei, Anhui Province.
