EV maker has turned into an exclusive beneficiary of Donald Trump’s second four-year stay at the White House. All thanks to Elon Musk’s financial and social efforts to propel Trump ahead of Kamala Harris on November 5. But what if Trump now gives him the cold shoulder?
Here’s a challenge — think of Donald Trump’s right-hand man. Who popped to mind? Was it his pick for Vice President JD Vance? Nuh uh, right? It’s Elon Musk. The unelected tech billionaire, Tesla CEO, X owner has been glued to the President, showing up on photos wearing MAGA hats and promising to restart America’s politics. Let that sink in?
With about seven weeks to go before Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20, Musk is already enjoying the windfalls of his support for the President-elect. At the end of the day, he dished out as much as $130 million to help Trump secure the win.
Quick maths: since November 5, Election Day, Musk’s net worth has puffed up by $72 billion. The rate of return on that $130 mil? A stratospheric 5,500%, or X55 in the span of a mere three weeks’ time. True, it’s all tied up in shares of Tesla TSLA — Musk owns roughly 13% of the electric-car manufacturer. But, more importantly, many investors and analysts believe this is just the start of what’s shaping up to be the golden era of EVs and the futuristic self-driving technology.
Despite not being in office yet, Trump has kicked off the work for loosening the federal standards for regulating self-driving vehicles. And expectations couldn’t be higher — Tesla’s mission to roll out cybercabs and robovans might materialize sooner rather than later. AI-trained self-driving cars might be roaming the streets as soon as late 2025.
Overly enthusiastic bargain hunters have sensed it already and have been bidding higher and higher for Tesla’s shares. Tesla, the formidable leader in the EV space, closed out November with a whopping 38% increase, or $300 billion poured in. That’s also when Tesla crossed $1 trillion in market value (a top 10 large-cap company) based on 3.21 billion shares outstanding (but still remains under the record high set in 2021). It was the best month for the stock since January 2023 and the tenth best month in the company’s history. For the record, shares jumped 81% in May 2023, the best month ever.
An additional push for bumping up those Tesla numbers might come from the outside, too. Unwillingly, though. Donald Trump has threatened to slap tariffs on imported goods and services to the tune of at least 25% or more (especially 👐 China 👐). Lots of cars and car parts are manufactured in China, Mexico and Canada, three of the countries that are top picks for Trump’s tariffs.
What’s more, Elon Musk’s bold foray into politics has birthed a new agency, one specifically tailored to his preference. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) promises to keep Musk and Trump talking on the daily. They’ve joined forces to potentially weed out the big spenders in the government, lean it out and give it a better flow.
Investors don’t seem to be doubting Elon Musk’s sincerity and all that powerful collaboration between him and Trump for 2025 and onward has translated into many early billions of dollars soaked up by Tesla (and Musk himself).
But on the flip side, Trump isn’t the type of person to share the limelight for too long. And so far Musk has been shoulder to shoulder with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, on planes, in cars and on the golf courts. And on Thanksgiving — sharing the same table. “He likes this place. I can’t get him out of here. He just likes this place,” Trump said at the America First Policy Institute Gala at Mar-a-Lago. Let’s just say it’d be a shame if Jim Cramer were to speak positively about that union.
With that said, do you think Musk made a bet for the ages by endorsing Trump? Or you’re more inclined to take a contrarian view — perhaps one where the Musk-Trump bromance falls out? Share your 2025 forecast in the comments and let’s spin up the discussion!
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