Musk suffers $22 billion loss after Tesla boycott in Europe.
The company lost market value and saw its shares plummet 8,4% on the New York Stock Exchange.
247 - Billionaire Elon Musk saw his fortune shrink by $22,2 billion on Tuesday after a collapse in Tesla sales in Europe, reports say. The GlobeThe company is facing a wave of protests across the continent due to Musk's political stances, as he supports far-right parties and even made a Nazi salute in a speech following the inauguration of US President Donald Trump.
Tesla lost market value and saw its shares plummet 8,4% on the New York Stock Exchange. This occurred because the drop in sales in Europe coincided with the expansion of the electric car fleet in the region. In Berlin, activists projected images of Musk's controversial gesture onto one of his factories, a protest that quickly went viral on the X platform (formerly Twitter), which he owns.
Furthermore, Tesla showrooms were vandalized in several American states, such as Colorado and Oregon, as well as in the Netherlands, demonstrating growing public dissatisfaction with Musk's behavior. Protesters also gathered in front of Tesla stores in the United States as part of a boycott campaign against the brand.
The impact of these protests seems to be affecting Musk's image more directly, adding to the financial crisis he is facing. Even with the drop in his fortune, which is now estimated at US$358 billion, the billionaire remains about US$100 billion richer than before Trump's victory in the 2016 presidential election.
Musk was nominated to head the Office of Government Efficiency (Doge) in the Trump administration and faces criticism for cutting less than 1% of the government budget, despite media announcements.
