
Musk damaged Tesla's brand in just a few months, fixing it will likely take longer
Elon Musk has been called a Moonshot Master, the Edison of Our Age and the Architect of the Future, but he's got a big problem at his car company and it's not clear he can fix it: damage to its brand.
Sales have plunged for
amid protests and boycotts over Musk's embrace of far right-wing views. Profits have been sliced by two-thirds so far this year, and rivals from China, Europe and the U.S. are pouncing.
On Tuesday came some relief as Musk announced in an earnings call with investors that he would be scaling back his government cost-cutting job in Washington to a 'day or two per week" to focus more on his old job as Tesla's boss.
Investors pushed up Tesla's stock 5% Wednesday, though there are plenty of challenges ahead.
Who wants a Tesla?
Musk seemed to downplay the role that brand damage played in the drop in first-quarter sales on the investor call. Instead, he emphasized something more fleeting — an upgrade to Tesla's best-selling Model Y that forced a shutdown of factories and pinched both supply and demand.
While financial analysts following the company have noted that potential buyers probably held back while waiting for the upgrade, hurting results, even the most bullish among them say the brand damage is real, and more worrisome.
'This is a full blown crisis,' said Wedbush Securities' normally upbeat Dan Ives earlier this month. In a note to its clients, JP Morgan warned of 'unprecedented brand damage."
Musk's take on the protests
Musk dismissed the protests against Tesla on the call as the work of people angry at his leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency because 'those who are receiving the waste and fraud wish it to continue.'
But the protests in Europe, thousands of miles from Washington, came after Musk supported
there. Angry Europeans hung Musk in effigy in Milan, projected an image of him doing a straight-arm salute on a Tesla factory in Berlin and put up posters in London urging people not to buy 'Swasticars' from him.
Sales in Europe have gone into a free fall in the first three months of this year — down 39%. In Germany, sales plunged 62%.
Another worrying sign: On Tuesday, Tesla backed off its earlier promise that sales would recover this year after dropping in 2024 for the first time a dozen years. Tesla said the global trade situation was too uncertain and declined to repeat the forecast.
Here come the rivals
Meanwhile, Tesla's competition is stealing its customers.
Among its fiercest rivals now is Chinese giant BYD. Earlier this year, the EV maker announced it had developed an electric battery that can
. And Tesla's European rivals have begun offering new models with advanced technology that is making them real Tesla alternatives just as popular opinion has turned against Musk.
Tesla's share of the EV market in the U.S. has dropped from two-thirds to less than half, according to Cox Automotive.
Pinning hopes on cybercabs
Another rival, Google parent Alphabet, is already ahead of Tesla in an area that Musk has promised will help remake his company: Cybercabs.
One of the highlights of Tesla's call Tuesday was Musk sticking with his previous prediction that it will launch driverless cabs without steering wheels and pedals in Austin, Texas, in June, and in other cities soon after.
But Google's service, called Waymo, already has logged
in San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Austin as part of a partnership with ride-hailing leader Uber.
A driverless future for Tesla owners?
Musk also told analysts that this driverless capability will be available on the Tesla vehicles already on the road through software updates over the air, and put a timeline on it: 'There will be millions of Teslas operating autonomously in the second half of the year."
But he has made similar promises before, only to miss his deadlines, such as in
when he vowed full automation by the end of the next year. He repeated the prediction, moving up the date, several more times, in following years.
A big problem is federal investigators have not given the all-clear that Tesla vehicles can drive completely on their own safely. Among other probes, safety regulators are looking into Tesla's so-called Full Self-Driving, which is only partial self-driving, for
like when there is sun glare.
On the positive side
In competition with rivals in the U.S., Tesla currently has one clear advantage: It will get hurt by less by tariffs because most of its vehicles are built in the countries where they are sold, including those in its biggest market, the U.S.
'Tariffs are still tough on a company where margins are still low, but we do have localized supply chains,' Musk said Tuesday. 'That puts us in a strong position.'
The company also reconfirmed that a cheaper version of its best-selling vehicle, the Model Y sport utility vehicle, will be ready for customers in the first half of this year. That could help boost sales.
Another plus: The company had a blow out first quarter in its energy storage business. And Musk has promised to be producing 5,000 Optimus robots, another Tesla business, by the end of the year.
Pricey stock
Even after falling nearly 50% from its December highs, Tesla's stock is still very richly valued based on the one yardstick that really matters in the long run: its earnings.
At 110 times its expected per share earnings this year, the stock is valued more than 25 times higher than General Motors. The average stock on in the S&P 500 index trades at less than 20 times earnings.
That leaves Tesla little margin for error if something goes wrong.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Economic Times
an hour ago
- Economic Times
Boeing shares drop 5% after Air India flight crashes in Ahmedabad
Synopsis Boeing shares tumbled 5.0 percent in early trading Thursday after a London-bound Boeing 787 operated by Air India crashed in western India, likely killing all 242 people on board. boeinglondonair indiaunited statesfatal crashes Nikita Papers IPO opens on May 27, price band set at Rs 95-104 per share Nikita Papers IPO opens on May 27, price band set at Rs 95-104 per share Why gold prices could surpass $4,000: JP Morgan's bullish outlook explained Why gold prices could surpass $4,000: JP Morgan's bullish outlook explained Cyient shares fall over 9% after Q4 profit declines, core business underperforms Cyient shares fall over 9% after Q4 profit declines, core business underperforms L&T Technology Services shares slide 7% after Q4 profit dips L&T Technology Services shares slide 7% after Q4 profit dips Trump-Powell standoff puts U.S. Rate policy in crosshairs: Who will blink first? Trump-Powell standoff puts U.S. Rate policy in crosshairs: Who will blink first? SEBI warns of securities market frauds via YouTube, Facebook, X and more SEBI warns of securities market frauds via YouTube, Facebook, X and more API Trading for All: Pi42 CTO Satish Mishra on How Pi42 is Empowering Retail Traders API Trading for All: Pi42 CTO Satish Mishra on How Pi42 is Empowering Retail Traders Security, transparency, and innovation: What sets Pi42 apart in crypto trading Security, transparency, and innovation: What sets Pi42 apart in crypto trading Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Altcoins? How investors are structuring their crypto portfolios, Avinash Shekhar explains Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Altcoins? How investors are structuring their crypto portfolios, Avinash Shekhar explains The rise of Crypto Futures in India: Leverage, tax efficiency, and market maturity, Avinash Shekhar of Pi42 explains NEXT STORY


Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Most G7 members ready to lower Russian oil price cap without US
BRUSSELS/PARIS, - Most countries in the Group of Seven nations are prepared to go it alone and lower the G7 price cap on Russian oil even if U.S. President Donald Trump decides to opt out, four sources familiar with the matter said. G7 country leaders are due to meet on June 15-17 in Canada where they will discuss the price cap first agreed in late 2022. The cap was designed to allow Russian oil to be sold to third countries using Western insurance services provided the price was no more than $60 a barrel. The European Union and Britain have been pushing to lower the price for weeks after a fall in global oil prices made the current $60 cap nearly irrelevant. The sources, who declined to be named, said the EU and Britain are ready to lead the charge and go it alone, backed by the other European G7 countries and Canada. They said it is still unclear what the U.S. will decide, though the Europeans are pushing for a united decision at the meeting. Japan's position also remains uncertain, they said. "There is a push among European countries to reduce the oil price cap to $45 from $60. There are positive signals from Canada, Britain and possibly the Japanese. We will use the G7 to try to get the U.S. on board," one of the sources said. The White House had no immediate comment. During the G7 finance ministers meeting in the Canadian Rockies last month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent remained unconvinced there was a need to lower the cap, according to sources. However some U.S. Senators may endorse the idea, including Lindsay Graham, who in recent weeks told reporters he supports lowering the cap. Graham is pushing a hard-hitting new set of Russia sanctions that could impose steep tariffs on buyers of Russian oil. The EU has proposed lowering the price to $45 a barrel in its latest 18th package of sanctions. The package must have unanimity from member states in order for it to be adopted, which could take several weeks. Russia's largest export grade, Urals, trades at around a $10 a barrel discount to the Dated Brent benchmark out of Baltic ports. Brent futures have been trading below $70 a barrel since early April. Sources said Washington's buy-in was not essential to lower the cap owing to Britain's dominance in global shipping insurance, and the EU's influence on the Western rules-abiding tanker fleet. The U.S., however, does matter when it comes to dollar-denominated payments for oil and its banking system. The EU and its Western allies have been progressively cracking down on Russia's shadow fleet of tankers and related actors, which work to circumvent the cap. The pressure has started to hurt Moscow's revenues and Western allies hope this will push more of the oil trade back under the cap. Russia's state-owned oil producer Rosneft reported a 14.4% slump in profits last year.


Economic Times
2 hours ago
- Economic Times
Explainer! As Sebi set to launch UPI IDs for market intermediaries, 5 things investors should know
Sebi UPI rule: Sebi enables flexible payment modes while mandating new UPI IDs for intermediaries to enhance security and transparency in stock market transactions. Synopsis Sebi UPI rule: Sebi has clarified that investors can choose their preferred payment method—UPI, NEFT, IMPS, RTGS, or Cheques—while transacting with intermediaries. From October 1, 2025, only validated UPI IDs will be accepted for UPI payments to Sebi-registered intermediaries. Investors can choose their preferred mode of payment while transacting with stock market intermediaries, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has clarified, saying that investors can choose their preferred mode of payment, such as UPI, IMPS, NEFT, RTGS, or Cheques. ADVERTISEMENT On Wednesday, the capital markets regulator issued a circular, making it mandatory for Sebi-registered intermediaries to obtain UPI IDs. Sebi said that it will issue UPI IDs for all Sebi-registered intermediaries who collect funds in a bid to avoid frauds and trading scams. The new ecosystem will facilitate a secure and transparent payment system for investors to pay their money only to registered intermediaries. No. The investors can choose their preferred mode of payment, such as UPI, IMPS, NEFT, RTGS, or Cheques. If an investor opts to use UPI for the payment to registered intermediaries, then they have to do so only using the new UPI IDs allotted to registered intermediaries. 4 things: One is the UPI ID should properly show the name of the intermediary, followed by the short abbreviation of their category for example 'brk' for Brokers, 'mf' for Mutual Funds to the left of the '@' character. Second should be the new and exclusive handle '@valid' on the right side of the @ followed by the bank name. Third, on the confirmation screen, the app should show a white thumbs-up icon inside a green triangle. Fourth, the QR code generated using the utility will have a white thumbs-up icon inside a green triangle. It will also display the UPI ID just below the QR the new UPI IDs are only for intermediaries to obtain and investors can continue to use their existing UPI IDs. ADVERTISEMENT The secure validated UPI ID of intermediaries will use the same banking channel as the earlier generic UPI handles. In case of any technical difficulty, investors are requested to approach their respective bank. Read more: Sebi to launch UPI IDs for registered entities to avoid trading frauds (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times) ADVERTISEMENT (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel) Nikita Papers IPO opens on May 27, price band set at Rs 95-104 per share Nikita Papers IPO opens on May 27, price band set at Rs 95-104 per share Why gold prices could surpass $4,000: JP Morgan's bullish outlook explained Why gold prices could surpass $4,000: JP Morgan's bullish outlook explained Cyient shares fall over 9% after Q4 profit declines, core business underperforms Cyient shares fall over 9% after Q4 profit declines, core business underperforms L&T Technology Services shares slide 7% after Q4 profit dips L&T Technology Services shares slide 7% after Q4 profit dips Trump-Powell standoff puts U.S. Rate policy in crosshairs: Who will blink first? Trump-Powell standoff puts U.S. Rate policy in crosshairs: Who will blink first? SEBI warns of securities market frauds via YouTube, Facebook, X and more SEBI warns of securities market frauds via YouTube, Facebook, X and more API Trading for All: Pi42 CTO Satish Mishra on How Pi42 is Empowering Retail Traders API Trading for All: Pi42 CTO Satish Mishra on How Pi42 is Empowering Retail Traders Security, transparency, and innovation: What sets Pi42 apart in crypto trading Security, transparency, and innovation: What sets Pi42 apart in crypto trading Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Altcoins? How investors are structuring their crypto portfolios, Avinash Shekhar explains Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Altcoins? How investors are structuring their crypto portfolios, Avinash Shekhar explains The rise of Crypto Futures in India: Leverage, tax efficiency, and market maturity, Avinash Shekhar of Pi42 explains NEXT STORY