CATL’s shares closed down 8.15% at RMB 376 on Thursday, bringing its year-to-date losses to roughly 36%, after the electric vehicle battery maker rattled investors by posting a rare profit decline on April 29. The world’s biggest EV battery supplier posted a net income of RMB 1.5 billion ($223 million) for the first three months of this year, a sharp decline of 23.6% from the same period in 2021 and well below multiple analysts’ projections. The company blamed the profit squeeze on rising material costs and supply chain issues, saying it expected the situation to improve from the second quarter after raising the price of its offerings. [Caixin, in Chinese]