Following a steep decline in Tesla’s first-quarter profits, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced he will cut back on his work with Trump’s administration.
Musk, who oversees Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), announced on Tuesday that he would focus “far more” on running Tesla and reduce his work in the government from May to just one or two days per week.
In a conference call with Wall Street analysts, Musk stated that the substantial work needed to put together the DOGE team and collaborate with the government to put the financial house in order is typically completed.
Following Musk’s remarks, which boosted investors concerned about the tech billionaire’s divided attention, Tesla shares increased by 4.6 percent in after-hours trading, down more than 40% since the start of the year.
Tesla reported a 71 percent decline in net profit for January-March, with income of $409 million compared to $ 1.39 billion the previous year, just hours after Musk made his remarks.
In response to consumer protests against Musk’s involvement in the Trump administration, Tesla’s global sales decreased by 13 percent over the same period.
In recent months, the electric carmaker has become a focal point for demonstrations against Trump’s policies, with charging stations, dealerships, and vehicles targeted in dozens of vandalism and arson attacks in various nations.
The business, which relies on parts from Mexico but produces cars for the US market, is also dealing with Trump’s 25% import tariff.
The world’s richest man, Musk, defended his work with DOGE in a conference call, claiming that it was aimed at preventing fraud and waste and putting “the country back on the right foot.”
Source: Aljazeera
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