Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Tuesday that a possible withdrawal of support for electric vehicles by U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump would hurt other automakers more than the Austin, Texas-based company.
“It would be devastating for our competitors, and it would hurt Tesla slightly, but in the long run it would probably help Tesla,” Musk said on a post-earnings conference call, after the electric vehicle maker reported its lowest profit margin in more than five years.
Former President Trump, a Republican candidate backed by Musk, has criticized the Joe Biden administration’s policies on electric vehicles and said he will “end the EV mandate” if he wins the election.
Musk said any Trump removal of subsidies and the resulting impact on Tesla car sales was not crucial because Tesla is an artificial intelligence company focused on self-driving technology.
“Tesla’s value is tremendously the range. These other things are in the noise relative to the range,” Musk said.
Trump’s vice presidential pick, JD Vance, introduced a bill last year to eliminate electric vehicle subsidies and replace them with a credit to promote gas vehicles, though it has virtually no chance of passing in the current Congress.
Musk said in a post on X last week: “Remove subsidies. It will only help Tesla. Also, remove subsidies from all industries!”
In his acceptance speech at the Republican Party convention last week in Milwaukee, Trump said his administration would impose tariffs of 100 to 200 percent on cars made in Mexico to make them “unsaleable” in the United States.
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– 2024-07-31 18:07:23
