BEIJING, June 4 Reuters Sales of Tesla39;s Chinamade electric vehicles dropped 6.6 from a year earlier to 72,573 units in May, extending a yearonyear decline for a second month, data from the China Passenger Car Association CPCA showed on Tuesday.

The slide came after an 18 fall in April that reversed a 0.2 gain in March, as the U.S. automaker has slashed Model Y production by a doubledigit percentage number at its Shanghai plant since March.

The output cut, which Reuters reported in late May, is intended to address weakening demand for its bestselling yet aged model in China.

Deliveries of Chinamade Model 3 and Model Y vehicles were up 16.7 from April.

Chinese rival BYD, with its Dynasty and Ocean series of EVs and plugin hybrids, sold 330,488 passenger vehicles in May, up 38.2 yearonyear.

Reporting by Qiaoyi Li, Zhang Yan and Miyoung Kim; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Louise Heavens

Source Reuters