Musk, who said "No trade barriers means collapse," now "Supports Tariff-Free"... Opposes EV Tariffs on China

"I support tariff-free trade." Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, expressed a negative stance on the Biden administration's decision to raise tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles from the current 25% to 100% starting in August, local time on the 23rd.

[Image source=Getty Images Yonhap News]

According to economic media CNBC and others, Musk participated via video at the 'Viva Technology' event held in Paris, France, saying, "Tesla and I did not request such tariffs, and I was surprised when the (China) tariffs were announced."

He added, "Tesla is competing quite well in the Chinese market without tariffs or preferential support," and said, "Generally, I support tariff-free trade." He also mentioned that hindering free trade or distorting markets is not good.

These remarks contrast with his warning during the early-year earnings conference call that "if there were no trade barriers, Chinese electric vehicle companies would devastate global competitors." Currently, Tesla is fiercely competing with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers amid concerns over slowing EV demand. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Tesla even lost the world's top electric vehicle sales spot to China's BYD.

At the event, before giving the above response, Musk avoided directly answering questions about low-priced new vehicles and even cut off a question. When a reporter asked whether the Biden administration's tariff policy on Chinese electric vehicles was a green light for Tesla to release more affordable EVs, Musk avoided answering by saying, "It is difficult to answer such a significant question related to a publicly traded company." The video connection was cut off for several minutes immediately afterward, and when Musk returned, he said the question was not of interest to the audience and only addressed the tariff issue instead of low-priced new vehicles.

Then, when a reporter from the online economic media 'Business Insider' began asking about Tesla's recent sales decline and stock price drop, Musk interrupted the reporter and said, "I don't think Business Insider is a real news organization, so we can stop questions right now," adding, "Let's move on to the next question."

Regarding SpaceX's ongoing human Mars exploration efforts, Musk said, "Probably within 5 years, the first humans will arrive on the Moon, and it will take 10 years, maybe 7 to 8 years, to reach Mars." In the past, Musk had mentioned 2024. He also presented a positive outlook on artificial intelligence (AI) technology, predicting, "You work, but even if you don't, AI and robots will provide you with all the goods and services you want."

Meanwhile, Tesla removed its previous goal of delivering 20 million vehicles annually by 2030 from the 'IMPACT REPORT 2023' released that day. Musk first announced this goal in 2020, and it was included in the 2021 and 2022 reports. Instead, the report stated, "Our goal is to sell as many Tesla products as possible to replace fossil fuels." Major foreign media outlets evaluated this as another sign that Tesla is shifting its focus to robotaxis and moving away from electric vehicles.