China is Tesla's second-largest market after the United States. Construction work at the company's factory in Shanghai is rapidly progressing; Musk has previously said it would be completed by the end of this year.

Tesla earlier announced its goal to produce half a million cars a year at its Shanghai plant, which Musk told investors on Tuesday was an interim target. He said capacity could top 1 million cars in the long term.

With an investment of over 50 billion yuan ($7 billion), Tesla's factory is the largest foreign investment project in Shanghai's manufacturing sector. Last month, the company started taking orders for the second-generation Model 3 that will be built in Shanghai.