What factors influenced NIO's earnings in 2024?

NIO's earnings in 2024 were influenced by a combination of factors that impacted its revenue, profitability, and operational performance:

1. **Revenue Challenges**: NIO faced a significant revenue decline, with a reported net income of -$3.07 billion for 2024. This was primarily due to a decrease of 2.1% year-over-year in total revenues, which reached RMB18.7 billion. Vehicle sales, which accounted for RMB16.7 billion, experienced a 4.1% year-over-year decline. However, other sales grew by 19.2% year-over-year, reaching RMB2 billion, and increased by 11.9% quarter-over-quarter.

|code|Ticker|Name|Date|Net Income YoY|Net Income|market_code|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|NIO|NIO.N|NIO|2024 Q1|-4.046487258886013|-7.180556191768E8|169|
|NIO|NIO.N|NIO|2024 Q2|16.856826673241052|-6.9435037140214E8|169|
|NIO|NIO.N|NIO|2024 Q3|-15.44267491597384|-7.2099834696708E8|169|
|NIO|NIO.N|NIO|2024 Q4|-28.86607588870822|-9.7426754457624E8|169|

|code|Ticker|Name|Date|Net Income|market_code|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|NIO|NIO.N|NIO|2024 Q1|-7.180556191768E8|169|
|NIO|NIO.N|NIO|2024 Q2|-6.9435037140214E8|169|
|NIO|NIO.N|NIO|2024 Q3|-7.2099834696708E8|169|
|NIO|NIO.N|NIO|2024 Q4|-9.7426754457624E8|169|

2. **Vehicle Deliveries and Market Position**: NIO achieved a new quarterly record with 61,855 vehicle deliveries in Q3 2024. Despite this, the company faced challenges, including a lower average selling price and intense competition in the EV market, which affected revenue and profitability.
3. **Margins and Gross Profit**: NIO reported a vehicle margin improvement to 13.1% in Q3 2024, up from 11% in the same period of 2023. However, the overall gross margin was 10.7%, up from 8% in Q3 2023 and 9.7% in the previous quarter. This indicates a positive trend in margin improvement, but it was not enough to offset the revenue challenges.
4. **Operating Expenses**: NIO's R&D expenses increased by 9.2% year-over-year, reaching RMB3.3 billion, and SG&A expenses rose by 13.8% year-over-year, reaching RMB4.1 billion. These increases were driven by higher personnel costs and increased sales and marketing activities, which put pressure on the bottom line.
5. **International Expansion and Partnerships**: NIO's international expansion efforts, including strategic partnerships in the UAE and continued efforts in Europe, are expected to contribute to long-term profitability. However, these initiatives may have incurred additional expenses in the short term.
6. **Autonomous Driving Feature**: The launch of the NOP Plus autonomous driving feature has been successful, with over 300,000 users and over 1.1 billion kilometers driven. This could potentially lead to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, although its direct impact on earnings is not clearly quantified in the available data.

In conclusion, NIO's 2024 earnings were influenced by a combination of factors, including revenue challenges, vehicle deliveries, margins, operating expenses, international expansion, and autonomous driving feature. While some factors presented opportunities for growth, such as improved margins and successful product launches, others, like intense competition and increased expenses, posed significant challenges.