© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Model Y cars are pictured during the opening ceremony of the new Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars in Gruenheide, Germany, March 22, 2022. Patrick Pleul/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

(Reuters) -Tesla said on Saturday it would increase the price for its Model Y electric vehicles (EV) in a number of European countries on March 22 by approximately 2,000 euros ($2,177) or the equivalent in local currencies.

The move, announced in a post on social media platform X, followed the automaker’s announcement on Friday that it would increase prices for all Model Y cars in the U.S. by $1,000 on April 1.

Tesla (NASDAQ:) had raised the prices of its Model Y rear-wheel drive and long-range vehicles by $1,000 to $43,990 and $48,990, respectively, on March 1.

“This is the essential quandary of manufacturing: factories need continuous production for efficiency, but consumer demand is seasonal,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in February, replying to a post on X from his company announcing that prices would go up the following month.

Tesla’s margins have been hurt by a price war with rivals that started more than a year ago.

In January, Tesla warned of “notably lower” sales growth this year as it focuses on the production of its next-generation EV, which is code-named “Redwood (NYSE:).”

($1 = 0.9185 euros)