Elon Musk’s company had sold 7007 cars in New Zealand by June 30, accounting for 4 per cent of all new vehicle registrations and putting it at number seven in the market. June had a record number of EV sales, matching a global surge.
Tesla shares, which have rebounded from US$108.10 on January 3, closed at US$291.26 and were flat in after-hours trading.
Netflix’s silver lining from writer, actor strike
Netflix, which lost 1 million subscribers in the year-ago quarter, said it added 5.9 million subs in the three months to June 30 for a new all-time high of 238.4 million.
The streaming giant’s ongoing password crackdown appeared to be paying dividends. Netflix said revenue was higher, and new sign-ups exceeded cancellations in every territory where the new policy had been put in place.
It was the biggest spurt in subs since the first wave of pandemic lockdowns.
The company also said it would be phasing out its cheapest plan, the ad-free Netflix Basic (US$9.99/month) in the US, where its cheapest option will now be its ad-supported US$6.99 a month plan.
The company now makes more money from a US$6.99 ad-supported plan - once ad revenue is factored in - than it does from a US$9.99 Basic plan, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
A spokesman for Netflix Australia-New Zealand said Basic was only being dropped in the US and the UK. It was phased out in Canada early in the second quarter.
There was no update on when or if the cheaper ad-supported plan could come to NZ.
So far, the firm’s ad-supported plan has so far only reached as close as Australia, where it costs $A6.99 per month.
Net profit rose 6 per cent over the year-ago quarter to US$1.5b. Revenue was up 3 per cent to US$8.2b.
While the Hollywood writer and actor strike could see a downstream content drought, for now it means less spending on content, providing a temporary boost for Netflix’s bottom line.
The streamer raised its full-year free cash flow forecast to US$5b from an earlier estimate of $3.5b.
The firm’s shares have rallied more than 50 per cent this year, but fell 6 per cent in extended trading. The fall was pinned on profit-taking.
United Airlines triples profit
Elsewhere, United Airlines said it had tripled second-quarter profit to US$1.08b on a rebound in overseas travel. It mirrored a recent profit lift reported by rival Delta.
Goldman Sachs shares rose 1 per cent in after-hours trading after the investment bank fell short of profit expectations for the latest quarter but topped forecasts for revenue.
And IBM posted better than expected second-quarter earnings as its net income rose 8 per cent to US$1.6b. Revenue fell 0.4 per cent to US$15.5b.
Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer.
