Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, expressed his opposition on the 23rd (local time) to the U.S. government’s decision to significantly increase tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles (EV).
According to Reuters and other sources, Musk participated in a video conference at the Viva Technology event in Paris, France, stating, “Tesla and I did not request these tariffs and were surprised when the tariffs were announced. It’s not good to hinder free trade or distort the market.”
He added that Tesla is “doing quite well in the Chinese market,” and “generally, I am in favor of no tariffs.”
Musk avoided answering questions about Tesla’s new low-cost cars and stock prices that day. When a reporter from the online business medium Business Insider asked about Tesla’s declining sales and stock prices, Musk interrupted the reporter, stating, “Because we think Business Insider is not a real media outlet, we can stop the questions right now,” and moved on to the next question.
Musk’s views on tariffs expressed that day contradict his previous statements. He said in a conference call after the earnings announcement last January, “I think if there were no trade barriers established, they will pretty much demolish most other car companies in the world.”
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