Nov 09, 2024 09:00 PM IST
Elon Musk’s endorsement of Donald Trump is expected to benefit the company once the Republican assumes office as the new US president.
American billionaire Elon Musk’s net worth on Friday surpassed $300 billion for the first time in three years, aided by the surge in the value of his company, Tesla, since the results of the US presidential election, news agency Reuters reported.
According to Forbes’s real-time billionaires list, Musk’s wealth topped $300 billion.
Tesla’s market value closed above $1 trillion on Friday, the first time in over two years, as its shares surged 8.2% to $321.22. The company’s stock gained 29% this week, adding more than $230 billion to its market capitalisation. The surge also marks its best performance since January 2023.
Musk’s support for US President-elect Donald Trump and his push for favourable regulation of autonomous vehicles are widely expected to yield positive outcomes for the company once Trump assumes charge at the White House.
“Tesla and CEO Elon Musk are perhaps the biggest winners from the election result, and we believe Trump’s victory will help expedite regulatory approval of the company’s autonomous driving technology,” said Garrett Nelson, senior equity analyst at CFRA Research.
Sources also told Reuters that Musk could get the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to defer potential actions concerning the safety of Tesla’s current driver-assistance systems.
Technological and other regulatory hurdles have delayed Musk’s plans to commercialise self-driving cars and build an economy car priced at under $30,000.
“If Musk can convince Trump to establish federal autonomous vehicle rules, we think that’s a good thing for the auto industry because we think firms want one set of rules rather than each state making their own,” said David Whiston, equity strategist at Morningstar.
According to Bloomberg, Trump has suggested that he would reconsider his plans to delay the adoption of electric vehicles. The Republican also voiced support for Musk’s company, SpaceX, and its plans to reach Mars. SpaceX alone accounts for $82 billion of Musk’s personal wealth.