(Yicai Global) June 9 -- Tesla's shares [NASDAQ:TSLA] closed up 7.26 percent at a record USD949.92 yesterday, doubling the figure from this year's start and giving it a market capitalization of USD176.09 billion, partly on the coattails of positive electric vehicle sales figures in China last month.

The Silicon Valley-based electric vehicle maker sold 11,095 made-in-Shanghai Model 3s to customers in the world's most populous country in May, up 205 percent from April, according to data the China Passenger Car Association published yesterday. The Model 3 was the best-selling EV last month after Tesla's China car sales fell in April under the weight of Covid-19, with less than 4,000 vehicles moved then.

China's wholesale sales of new energy passenger vehicles totaled 70,200 last month in an annual 25.8 percent decline but a monthly gain of 19.5 percent, CPCA data show. This growth puts Tesla squarely ahead of its rivals in the Chinese market.

Tesla however did not cooperate with CPCA in compiling the sales figures. The trade group's data derive from terminal retail sales, i.e. the number of vehicles buyers actually received.

Editor: Ben Armour