Trump promises to buy a Tesla as Elon Musk-led carmaker’s shares tank 15%

U.S. President Donald Trump said he will buy a brand new Tesla as a show of confidence and support for Tesla CEO Elon Musk amid growing calls for a boycott of the electric carmaker.

The announcement comes hours after Tesla shares recorded their worst single-day drop in nearly half a decade. The automaker’s stock tanked 15.43% on Monday amid concerns over slow EV sales and Musk’s role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the Trump administration, which has drawn criticism from several quarters. In Silicon Valley, some Tesla owners have put up bumper stickers stating ‘Oust Elon’ owing to Musk’s politics and his involvement in the Trump administration.

“To Republicans, Conservatives, and all great Americans, Elon Musk is “putting it on the line” in order to help our Nation, and he is doing a FANTASTIC JOB! But the Radical Left Lunatics, as they often do, are trying to illegally and collusively boycott Tesla, one of the World’s great automakers, and Elon’s “baby,” in order to attack and do harm to Elon, and everything he stands for. They tried to do it to me at the 2024 Presidential Ballot Box, but how did that work out? In any event, I’m going to buy a brand new Tesla tomorrow morning as a show of confidence and support for Elon Musk, a truly great American. Why should he be punished for putting his tremendous skills to work in order to help MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN???” Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social.

Tesla's stock has declined each week since Musk took on the role of head of the Department of Government Efficiency in the Trump administration. The electric vehicle company has seen its market value drop by over 50%, shedding nearly $800 billion.

Replying to a post on X about the worst single-day drop, Musk wrote, "It will be fine long-term."

U.S. equity markets witnessed a selloff on Monday amid concerns that Trump’s tariff policies could impact economic growth. The market rout intensified after Trump said the U.S. economy would see short-term turbulence from his trade and fiscal agenda and refused to rule out a recession.

Meanwhile, Tesla signed a lease agreement for its maiden outlet in India earlier in March. Tesla is currently hiring for at least 20 positions in India, including for a store manager role in Mumbai and for several other roles in Pune.

In an interview with Sean Hannity, Trump had said that Musk's plans to manufacture Tesla in India would be 'unfair' to the United States. “If he (Musk) built the factory in India, that’s okay, but that’s unfair to us.  It’s very unfair,” Trump had said. “Every country in the world takes advantage of us, and they do it with tariffs... It’s impossible for him (Musk) to sell a car, practically, in, as an example, India,” he said.