It’s been a rough year (or day, perhaps) for Elon Musk.
Musk, a close ally of Donald Trump and the current head of the president’s controversial Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has seen a significant financial decline this year.
Given his ties to Trump, it appears that Musk’s Tesla stock took a major hit back in January when the newly-elected president took office.
Things have only worsened for the once-leading electric vehicle manufacturer in several ways.
Tesla cars and dealerships have recently been targeted in a series of attacks, prompting Trump to establish a ‘Tesla task force’ to address the situation.
Musk himself has addressed the ongoing violence and expressed his surprise.
“It’s remarkable how much violence has occurred—people have had their cars burned, bullets fired into dealerships, and swastikas scratched into Teslas of innocent people simply going about their lives,” Musk told Fox News.
He added, “The president has made it clear that we will go after those funding and organizing these violent attacks, and Attorney General Bondi has echoed the same message.”
As a result of these targeted attacks on Tesla owners, sales of the electric vehicles have dropped by 13 percent in the first quarter of 2025, according to Reuters.
Tesla sales have take a huge hit this year (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
In another setback for the car manufacturer, Trump’s newly imposed tariffs will impact Tesla, as the company sources many of its car parts from overseas.
On April 3, a new 25 percent levy on cars and parts imported into the US went into effect, with tariffs on car parts set to begin on May 3.
There were hopes that Tesla might not be too severely impacted by the president’s harsh tariff changes, given that much of its car production takes place in the US. However, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that 20 to 25 percent of Tesla’s parts are imported from other countries.
With this in mind, Musk is said to have lost a staggering $11 billion yesterday, according to Bloomberg, and a total of $110 billion so far this year.
The recent loss followed a 5.5 percent drop in Tesla’s stock.
Elon Musk is said to have lost $11 billion in one day (Jamie Kelter Davis/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Tesla isn’t the only manufacturer feeling the impact, as some vehicles could become thousands of dollars more expensive.
In its forecast for the automotive industry following Trump’s tariffs, Anderson Economic Group (AEG) stated: “The large SUV category includes models assembled in the US with parts from Canada, Mexico, and Europe, and these vehicles generally have relatively high manufacturer’s suggested retail prices.”
“These vehicles are expected to face a tariff increase of $10,000 to $12,000, with some battery-electric vehicles potentially seeing tariffs exceeding $15,000.”
