(Yicai Global) Feb. 28 -- Li Auto’s stock price slumped in Hong Kong after the Chinese electric carmaker saw its net loss widen 531 percent last year.

Li Auto’s shares [HKG: 2015] fell 2.7 percent to close at CNY92.25 (USD13.31) each today. In pre-market trading in New York, the firm’s stock [NASDAQ: LI] was up 0.5 percent at USD23.42 as of 4.07 a.m. local time.

The net loss tallied CNY2 billion (USD294.7 million) in the 12 months ended Dec. 31, mainly because it set aside CNY803 million in the third quarter to deal with consumer complaints over lower priced newer models and because of higher research and development costs, the Beijing-based company's earning report showed yesterday. Revenue jumped 68 percent to CNY45.3 billion (USD6.6 billion).

Li Auto delivered 133,246 vehicles last year, up 47 percent from 2021, it said. The startup has 288 retail stores and 318 servicing centers in 223 cities, and replaced the Li One model with the L9 and L8 vehicles. Deliveries of the L7 will begin in March.

Battery prices are expected to go down in the long term, which is good for the industry, not only for Li Auto, but also for suppliers and battery manufacturers, said Li Xiang, founder, chairman and chief executive of the firm.

Li Auto has embraced a multi-supplier strategy that enables it to have a stable supply chain and simultaneously develop multiple vehicles and meet deadlines, Li said. "We'll continue to work with suppliers to negotiate good terms," he added without disclosing further details.

The firm's fourth-quarter revenue jumped 66 percent from a year earlier to CNY17.7 billion, while net income shrank 10 percent to CNY265.3 million. 

Li Auto expects shipments to increase 64 percent to 73 percent from a year ago to between 52,000 and 55,000 units this quarter, following 15,141 deliveries last month and continuing the strong end to 2022. Revenue is likely to soar 83 to 93 percent to about CNY17.5 billion to CNY18.5 billion (USD2.5 billion to USD2.7 billion).

Editor: Martin Kadiev