Chinese electric vehicle-maker XPeng (NYSE:XPEV) extended gains on Tuesday as the company launched its new mass-market car brand, Mona, with prices starting at $16,812, significantly lower than its previous offerings.
XPeng’s (XPEV) stock on the U.S. exchange closed 6.5% higher on Tuesday, while its Hong Kong-traded shares gained 3% on Wednesday.
Orders for the Mona M03 electric coupe exceeded 10,000 in 52 minutes after the car’s formal launch in Beijing, CNBC reported.
The M03 sedan, equipped with an autonomous driving assistance system, has a range of 515 km and is expected to mount a challenge to rivals like BYD (OTCPK:BYDDF), Tesla (TSLA), and NIO (NIO), among others.
The launch targets the budget-conscious consumers amid rising EV market challenges, where sales are sluggish, and the price wars are intensifying.
Recently, the automaker’s co-founder and CEO, He Xiaopeng, bought ~$13.5M worth of stock, raising his ownership stake to about 18.8%, dragging its price ~6% higher on Monday.