U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he will buy a new Tesla car to show support for the electric carmaker's chief and his ally Elon Musk amid recent "Tesla Takedown" protests and the slump in the company's stock price.
Shares of the automaker rose about 5% in premarket trading, rebounding from the biggest one-day fall in four-and-a half years.
Musk's role in sweeping cuts to the federal workforce at the behest of Trump has led to protests in the U.S. against Tesla.
About 350 demonstrators protested outside a Tesla electric vehicle dealership in Portland, Oregon, last week, while nine people were arrested during a raucous demonstration outside a New York City Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab dealership earlier in March.
Musk is spearheading the Trump administration's so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump defended Musk, saying he was "putting it on the line" to help the country and was doing a "fantastic" job.
"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," Trump said.
Musk's reaction
Musk thanked the president for his support on his own social media platform X.
Trump in January took aim at electric vehicles, revoking a 2021 executive order signed by his predecessor Joe Biden that sought to ensure half of all new vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2030 were electric.
Tesla's market capitalization has more than halved since hitting an all-time high of $1.5 trillion on December 17, erasing most of the gains the stock made after Musk-backed Trump won U.S. election in November.
The stock's decline since December stems from falling vehicle sales and profits, protests against Musk's political activity and investor worries that politics was distracting the world's richest man from tending to his cash cow.
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Iran’s top negotiator has said recent talks with the United States have shown progress, but that major differences remain over nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz, as diplomatic efforts continue alongside escalating regional instability.
Construction of U.S. President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom project will be allowed to continue after an appeals court granted an administrative stay, temporarily blocking a lower court order that had halted parts of the work.
The U.S. Navy has forcibly intercepted and boarded the Iranian cargo ship TOUSKA in the Gulf of Oman after it attempted to breach the ongoing naval blockade. President Trump confirmed that the vessel was neutralised and seized by Marines following a direct strike on its engine room.
Iran accuses the United States of breaching a ceasefire after a commercial ship was seized in the Gulf of Oman, vowing retaliation, as Israel warns south Lebanon residents to avoid restricted areas.
Progessive Bulgaria, led by pro-Russian Eurosceptic Rumen Radev is on track to form Bulgaria’s next government, after official results showed a runaway victory for the coalition in the Balkan nation's parliamentary elections on Monday (20 April).
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Blue Origin, the U.S. space company of billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, successfully reused and recovered a booster for its New Glenn rocket launched from Florida on Sunday (19 April), in the latest chapter of its intensifying rivalry with Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
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A Canadian woman has been shot dead and 13 others injured in a shooting at the Teotihuacan pyramids on Monday, one of Mexico’s most visited tourist attractions.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 21st of April, covering the latest developments you need to know
Japan on Tuesday unveiled its biggest overhaul of defence export rules in decades, scrapping restrictions on overseas arms sales and opening the way for exports of warships, missiles and other weapons.
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