New York (AFP)

Tesla sent new positive signals to the markets on Wednesday, dangling the start of an era of profits that could keep the stock market boom alive, making it the second largest automotive group behind Toyota and ahead of Volkswagen and General Motors.

The electric vehicle maker hopes to deliver more than half a million cars in 2020, which represents a jump of 36% over a year.

This ambition is nurtured, explained the Elon Musk group, by starting production of the Model Y SUV earlier than expected and increasing production rates at its Chinese factory in Shanghai.

The manufacturer of electric vehicles explains that production of the Model Y started this month at its California factory in Fremont, which should bring, by mid-2020, the capacities of this factory to 500,000 units.

"Tesla has the potential to reach the million vehicles delivered per year, which seemed out of reach, two years ahead of our initial projections," reacted Daniel Ives to Wedbush Securities, noting that demand for the brand's cars remained strong in China.

- "Primordial" -

Tesla plans to deliver the first Model Ys by the end of March and start production in Shanghai in 2021. The first deliveries of cars produced at its European plant in Berlin will take place from 2021.

"Given its competitive price and the battery life, the Model Y can become Tesla's best-selling vehicle. It is essential for the success of the company in the long term," says expert Jessica Caldwell. at Edmunds.com.

This has also seemed to confirm Tesla by claiming to expect to be profitable now, with a few exceptions, especially during periods of launching a new product and increasing production rates.

The Model Y allows Tesla to offer a vehicle in the SUV segment, expected to account for 51% of new cars purchased in the United States this year, said Edmunds.com.

This city SUV, whose base price is around $ 70,000, will nonetheless compete with the Audi eTron and the Jaguar iPace. The Mercedes Benz EQC is expected later this year.

The federal tax credit for "clean" cars should also be reduced to a bare minimum.

- Solid results -

Tesla's optimism is further enhanced by better results than expected in the fourth quarter of 2019.

Tesla posted a net profit of 105 million dollars, certainly down 2.5%, but reported per share and excluding exceptional items, benchmark in North America, it is 2.14 dollars, well above 1.72 dollar anticipated.

Driven by record deliveries of 112,000 vehicles (+ 23%), quarterly sales increased by 2.2% to 7.38 billion, above expectations (7.02 billion).

"This performance changes the game (...) It augurs a new era for (Elon) Musk", commented Daniel Ives, whose enthusiasm was shared on Wall Street where the title soared by more than 11% in electronic exchanges following the close of the session.

The action has been on a cloud for three months, so that Tesla has become the first American car group on the stock market, ahead of General Motors and Ford, and the second worldwide behind Toyota, but before Volkswagen, with a capitalization of nearly 105 billion. dollars on Wednesday night.

The business community increasingly believes in Elon Musk's promise to make Tesla the automotive benchmark for the next few years.

The brand is notably associated with technological innovation and the protection of the planet with its promise that its vehicles are and will remain the most ecological on the market.

Tesla has also proven that it can mass produce a vehicle, despite the difficulties encountered with its entry-level model, the Model 3.

The group, which also manufactures solar panels, has still not managed to earn money over an entire year since its creation in August 2003.

Last year, it posted a net loss of $ 862 million, reduced 11.7% year-on-year, for revenue of $ 24.6 billion, up 14.5%.

© 2020 AFP