Tesla reports lower car sales but figures better than feared
The sales figures released Wednesday, which are global, reflect the more contested nature of the EV market, which Tesla once dominated, but which now also features BYD and other low-cost Chinese companies, as well as legacy western automakers like General Motors, Toyota and Volkswagen.
But Musk's political activism on behalf of right-wing figures has also made the company a target of boycotts and demonstrations, weighing on sales. In recent days, Musk has revived a feud with US President Donald Trump, dragging Tesla shares lower on Tuesday.
The figures portend another poor round of earnings when Tesla reports results on July 23. Analysts currently project a drop of 16 percent to $1.2 billion in profits, according to S&P Capital IQ.
Tesla has faced questions about its dearth of new retail auto products to wow consumers after Musk's futuristic Cybertruck proved polarizing.
Analysts will be looking for an update on the state of new offerings after Tesla said in April that it planned "more affordable models" in the first half of 2025. The company has begun deliveries of its revamped Model Y in some markets, according to news reports.
Tesla launched a long-discussed robotaxi venture in Austin, Texas, lending momentum to Musk's branding of the company as at the forefront of autonomous and artificial intelligence technology.
But reports that the self-driving cars have driven recklessly have prompted oversight from US regulators.
Heading into Wednesday's sales figure release, notes from JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank had forecast bigger drops in second-quarter deliveries, citing poor figures in Europe especially.
The JPMorgan note was especially bearish, setting a December share price target of $115, down more than 60 percent from today's levels and citing an expected drag from the elimination of US tax credits for EVs under Trump's legislation moving through Congress.
But Wedbush's Dan Ives said Wednesday's "better-than-feared" report set the stage for growth.
"If Musk continues to lead and remain in the driver's seat, we believe Tesla is on a path to an accelerated growth path over the coming years with deliveries expected to ramp in the back-half of 2025 following the Model Y refresh cycle," Ives said.
Political wildcard
A wildcard remains how Musk's shifting relationship with Trump could affect Tesla.
Musk donated more than $270 million to Trump's 2024 campaign, barnstorming key battleground states for the Republican.
After the election, he oversaw the launch of the "Department of Government Efficiency," a controversial initiative that eliminated thousands of government jobs that DOGE said were part of a pattern of waste, fraud and abuse.
But Musk has broken with Trump over the White House's flagship tax and spending bill, which Musk rated as wasteful and misguided.
Musk has called the bill "utterly insane and destructive" and accused bill supporters of backing "debt slavery."
In response, Trump has threatened to target Musk's business empire and warned of deporting the South African-born Musk. Tesla shares fell more than five percent on Tuesday following this back and forth.
"This high-profile feud introduces political risk," Briefing.com said in a note Tuesday.
© 2025 AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Euronews
28 minutes ago
- Euronews
What is in Trump's tax and spending bill that will soon become law?
Republicans muscled President Donald Trump's tax and spending cut bill through the House on Thursday, the final step necessary to get the proposal to his desk by the GOP's self-imposed deadline of 4th July. At nearly 900 pages, the legislation is a sprawling collection of tax breaks, spending cuts and other Republican priorities, including new money for national defence and deportations. Democrats united against the legislation, but were powerless to stop it as long as Republicans stayed united. The Senate passed the bill, with Vice President JD Vance casting the tiebreaking vote. The House passed an earlier iteration of the bill in May with just one vote to spare. It passed the final version with a 218 to 214 split. Here's the latest on what's in the bill and when some of its provisions go into effect. GOP bill includes reductions for businesses and new tax breaks Republicans say the bill is crucial because there would be a massive tax increase after December when tax breaks from Trump's first term expire. The legislation contains about $4.5 trillion (€3.8tn) in tax cuts. The existing tax rates and brackets would become permanent under the bill, solidifying the tax cuts approved in Trump's first term. It would temporarily add new tax deductions on tip, overtime and auto loans. There's also a $6,000 deduction for older adults who earn no more than $75,000 a year (€63,000), which is a nod to his pledge to end taxes on Social Security benefits. It would boost the $2,000 child tax credit to $2,200 (€1,900). Millions of families at lower income levels would not get the full credit. A cap on state and local deductions, called SALT, would quadruple to $40,000 (€34,000) for five years. It's a provision important to New York and other high tax states, though the House wanted it to last for 10 years. There are scores of business-related tax cuts, including allowing firms to immediately write off 100% of the cost of equipment and research. Proponents say this will boost economic growth. The wealthiest households would see a $12,000 (€10,000) increase from the legislation, and the bill would cost the poorest people $1,600 (€1,400) a year, mainly due to reductions in Medicaid and food aid, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office analysis of the House's version. Legislation funds the border wall and deportations The bill would provide some $350 billion (€300bn) for Trump's border and national security agenda, including for the US-Mexico border wall and for 100,000 migrant detention facility beds, as he aims to fulfill his promise of the largest mass deportation operation in US history. Money would go for hiring 10,000 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, with $10,000 (€8,500) signing bonuses and a surge of Border Patrol officers, as well. The goal is to deport some 1 million people per year. To help pay for it, immigrants would face various new fees, including when seeking asylum protections. For the Pentagon, the bill would provide billions for ship building, munitions systems, and quality of life measures for servicemen and women, as well as $25bn (€21bn) for the development of the Golden Dome missile defence system. The Defence Department would have $1bn for border security. Medicaid, SNAP face deep cuts To help partly offset the lost tax revenue and new spending, Republicans aim to cut back on Medicaid and food assistance for people below the poverty line. Republicans argue they are trying to rightsize the safety net programs for the population they were initially designed to serve, mainly pregnant women, the disabled and children, and root out what they describe as waste, fraud and abuse. The package includes new 80-hour-a-month work requirements for many adults receiving Medicaid and food stamps, including older people up to age 65. Parents of children 14 and older would have to meet the program's work requirements. There's also a proposed new $35 co-payment that can be charged to patients using Medicaid services. More than 71 million people rely on Medicaid, which expanded under Obama's Affordable Care Act, and 40 million use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Most already work, according to analysts. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that 11.8 million more Americans would become uninsured by 2034 if the bill became law and 3 million more would not qualify for food stamps, also known as SNAP benefits. Republicans are looking to have states pick up some of the cost for SNAP benefits. Currently, the federal government funds all benefit costs. Under the bill, states beginning in 2028 will be required to contribute a set percentage of those costs if their payment error rate exceeds 6%. Payment errors include both underpayments and overpayments. 'Big beautiful' bill slashes clean energy tax credits Republicans are proposing to dramatically roll back tax breaks designed to boost clean energy projects fuelled by renewable sources such as energy and wind. The tax breaks were a central component of President Joe Biden's 2022 landmark bill focused on addressing climate change and lowering health care costs. Democratic Senator for Oregon Ron Wyden went so far as to call the GOP provisions a 'death sentence for America's wind and solar industries and an inevitable hike in utility bills'. A tax break for people who buy new or used electric vehicles would expire on 30 September of this year, instead of at the end of 2032 under current law. Meanwhile, a tax credit for the production of critical materials will be expanded to include metallurgical coal used in steelmaking. Bill reduces a gun tax and restricts Medicaid access for abortion providers A number of extra provisions reflect other GOP priorities. The bill creates a new children's savings program, called Trump Accounts, with a potential $1,000 (€850) deposit from the Treasury. The Senate provided $40million (€34mn) to establish Trump's long-sought 'National Garden of American Heroes'. There's a new excise tax on university endowments and a new tax on remittances, or transfers of money that people in the US send abroad. A $200 (€170) tax on gun silencers and short-barrelled rifles and shotguns was eliminated. One provision bars for one year Medicaid payments to family planning providers that provide abortions, namely Planned Parenthood. Additionally, a provision would increase the nation's debt limit, by $5tn (€4.2tn), to allow continued borrowing to pay already accrued bills. State AI regulations cut from bill after a GOP uproar The Senate overwhelmingly revolted against a proposal meant to deter states from regulating artificial intelligence. Republican governors across the country asked for the moratorium to be removed and the Senate voted to do so with a resounding 99-1 vote. A provision was thrown in at the final hours that will provide $10bn annually to rural hospitals for five years, or $50bn in total (€42bn). The Senate bill had originally provided $25bn for the program, but that number was upped to win over holdout GOP senators and a coalition of House Republicans warning that reduced Medicaid provider taxes would hurt rural hospitals. The amended bill also stripped out a new tax on wind and solar projects that use a certain percentage of components from China. Final price tag: GOP bill could add $3.3tn to deficit Altogether, the Congressional Budget Office projects that the bill would increase federal deficits over the next 10 years by nearly $3.3tn (€2.8tn) from 2025 to 2034. An increase in public debt would likely make government borrowing more expensive as investors may view Treasuries as a riskier proposition. Senate Republicans nonetheless reject the projections by proposing a unique strategy of not counting the existing tax breaks as a new cost because those breaks are already 'current policy'. Republican senators say the Senate Budget Committee chairman has the authority to set the baseline for the preferred approach. Under the alternative Senate GOP view, the bill would reduce deficits by almost half a trillion dollars over the coming decade, the CBO said. Democrats say this is 'magic math' that obscures the true costs of the tax breaks. Some non-partisan groups worried about the country's fiscal trajectory are siding with Democrats in that regard. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget says Senate Republicans were employing an 'accounting gimmick that would make Enron executives blush".
Euronews
3 hours ago
- Euronews
US agencies altered health datasets in ‘gender ideology' crackdown
The Trump administration quietly altered massive US health datasets to remove any mention of gender, according to a new analysis. Scientists around the world rely on health data from US government agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). But since President Donald Trump took office in January, these agencies have been altering data labels, mostly without disclosure, according to the investigation published in The Lancet, a leading medical journal. The authors argue that the 'hidden' changes could cast doubt on the integrity of American science. The database edits 'might be politically motivated and [are] not transparent,' Dr Aaron Kesselheim, a professor at Harvard Medical School, and Janet Freilich, a law professor at Boston University, said in the paper. Their analysis included 232 US health datasets that were edited from late January to late March, covering veterans' health care use, global tobacco consumption, stroke deaths, nutrition, exercise, and obesity. It did not include datasets that are updated on a regular basis. About half of these datasets were 'substantially altered' during the two-month period, but only 15 acknowledged that changes had been made, the study found. The parts of the datasets meant for these disclosures remained empty as of early May, the researchers said. In most of the edited datasets – 106 of them – the word 'gender' was swapped out for 'sex'. US agencies have not confirmed or explained the changes, but Freilich and Kesselheim suspect they were made to comply with a Trump order to remove 'messages that promote or otherwise inculcate gender ideology'. The executive order, issued on Trump's first day in office, said it aimed to restore 'biological truth' to US agencies, and set a national policy 'to recognise two sexes, male and female,' they said. It was part of a flurry of activity to clamp down on LGBTQ protections. Some data was initially removed from federal websites, but was largely restored due to a court order. The Lancet analysis indicates that not all changes were reversed. It is not clear if the actual numbers were altered, or only the labels about gender or sex. But Freilich and Kesselheim said the distinction is important because some people will respond to surveys differently based on each term. That can undermine the quality of the data and lead researchers to draw inaccurate conclusions, they said. They described the undisclosed changes as a 'crisis' that could make US data 'untrustworthy and unusable'. They called on governments elsewhere in the world to invest in other data sources.
France 24
3 hours ago
- France 24
Where do trade talks stand in the rush to avert higher US tariffs?
The levies taking effect July 9 were announced in April, with the White House citing a lack of "reciprocity" in trade relations. But they were swiftly halted, allowing room for talks. Days before their reimposition, where do things stand? EU: 'Ready' for deal The European Union said it is "ready for a deal" with Washington, with the bloc's trade chief meeting his US counterparts Thursday. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the EU was targeting an "agreement in principle" when it came to the July 9 cutoff. With no deal, the US tariff on EU goods doubles from the "baseline" of 10 percent to 20 percent -- with Trump previously threatening a 50 percent level. Vietnam: A pact with uncertainties Washington and Hanoi unveiled a trade pact Wednesday with much fanfare and few details, but it allowed Vietnam to avoid Trump's initial 46 percent tariff. Under the agreement, Vietnamese goods face a minimum 20 percent tariff while products made elsewhere face a 40 percent levy -- a clause to restrict "transshipping" by Chinese groups. But there remain questions on how the higher levy would apply to products using foreign parts. There is also a risk that Beijing will adopt retaliatory measures, analysts warned. Japan: Rice, autos at stake Despite being a close US ally and major source of foreign investment, Japan might not escape Trump's tariff hike. Tokyo's trade envoy Ryosei Akazawa has made numerous trips to Washington through the end of June. But Trump recently criticized what he described as Japan's reluctance to open up further to US rice and auto exports. "I'm not sure we're going to make a deal," Trump said, adding that the country could pay a tariff of "30 percent, 35 percent, or whatever the number is that we determine." India: A good position Indian manufacturers and exporters want to believe they can avoid a 26 percent tariff. Negotiations between both countries have been going well for weeks, and Trump himself suggested at the end of June that a "very big" agreement was imminent. Ajay Sahai, director general of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations, said the feedback he received "suggests positive developments." But he maintained that the situation was fluid. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has stressed that agriculture and dairy products remain "very big red lines." South Korea: Muted optimism Seoul, which is already reeling from US tariffs on steel and autos, wants to avert a sweeping 25 percent levy on its other exports. Cooperation in shipbuilding could be a bargaining chip, but "at this stage, both sides still haven't clearly defined what exactly they want," said new President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday. "I can't say with confidence that we'll be able to wrap everything up by July 8," he added. Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan in the wings Other Asian economies including Indonesia, Thailand and Cambodia, which faces a 49 percent tariff, wait with bated breath. Indonesia has indicated willingness to boost energy, agriculture and merchandise imports from the United States. Bangladesh meanwhile is proposing to buy Boeing planes and step up imports of US agriculture products. Taiwan, for whom Washington is a vital security partner, faces a 32 percent duty without a pact. Although both sides have faced bumps along the way, Taiwanese Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim said "negotiators from both sides are working diligently" to find a path forward. Switzerland: Hope for delay Switzerland's government said Washington has acknowledged it was acting in good faith, and assumes its tariff level will remain at 10 percent on July 9 while negotiations continue. But without a decision by the president as of the end of June, Switzerland did not rule out that levies could still rise to a promised 31 percent.
