Tesla Stock Halved... Musk Admits Responsibility, Calls It a "Very Expensive Lesson"

Mentioned During Wisconsin Supreme Court Election Campaign

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, is watching the men's singles final on the last day of the US Open tennis tournament held on September 8 last year (local time) at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York, USA. Photo by EPA and Yonhap News.

'-47%'

Elon Musk, CEO of the electric vehicle company Tesla, which he leads, has acknowledged that the cause of the stock price drop?down nearly half from last year's peak of $488?is due to himself. However, he stated that while general consumers' backlash against Tesla is due to the activities of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the stock price will be fine in the long term.

On the 31st (local time), according to Bloomberg and CBS News, Musk said at a state supreme court election campaign town hall event held in Green Bay, Wisconsin, the previous evening that the activities of the Department of Government Efficiency are "costing me a lot" and are "very expensive."

He went on to describe those opposing the Department of Government Efficiency's activities who attack Tesla stores and vehicles as "trying to put enormous pressure on me and Tesla to stop this," adding, "My Tesla stock and the stock of everyone holding Tesla have almost halved. That is a big deal." Nevertheless, Musk said, "In the long term, I believe Tesla stock will do well," and added, "So maybe now is a buying opportunity."

Tesla's stock price rose to $479.86 on December 17 last year, about a month after President Trump was elected, but after the start of Trump's second term and Musk's initiation of the Department of Government Efficiency activities, it sharply declined, closing at $259.16 on the 31st, down about 47% from the peak. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk's personal net worth has also decreased by more than $100 billion (approximately 147.5 trillion KRW) this year.

The growing opposition to the federal agency downsizing and mass layoffs of public officials advocated by Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency is believed to have dealt a blow to Tesla's stock price. On the 29th, protests against Tesla were held at over 200 Tesla stores in the United States alone, and similar protests continued at about 200 Tesla stores outside the U.S., including in Australia, New Zealand, Finland, Norway, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom.

In the early hours of the 31st of last month, a fire broke out at a Tesla store on the outskirts of Rome, Italy, burning 17 cars. Earlier, on the 18th of the same month, a suspect in his 30s, presumed to be of Korean descent, was arrested by police for setting fire to several vehicles at a Tesla repair center in Las Vegas, USA.

However, Musk continues his political activities despite these circumstances. He recently entered the Wisconsin state supreme court election, focusing on the election of a conservative candidate. According to the local newspaper Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, he spent over $14 million (approximately 20.6 billion KRW) to support Brad Schimel, the Republican-backed candidate, in the Wisconsin state supreme court election. If Schimel is elected in this supreme court election, the Wisconsin Supreme Court will be reorganized with a conservative majority of 4 to 3. The Republican Party expects that by shifting the court in the battleground state of Wisconsin to the right, they will gain advantages in issues such as abortion and redistricting.

There is also a more direct issue related to Tesla. U.S. media analyzed that Musk may have entered the state supreme court election to resolve the ongoing lawsuit Tesla is pursuing in Wisconsin, which prohibits direct sales by automobile manufacturers, to open direct sales stores.