Tesla shares drop as Musk says he’s launching new political party

By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - US-based electric vehicle (EV) producer Tesla's shares plummeted Monday as the CEO, Elon Musk, announced that he will launch a new political party.

Tesla's shares were down around 7.3% to $292.22 on Monday as of 1500GMT.

The EV firm's market capitalization decreased to $921.7 billion.

The EV producer's stock price has fallen around 20% in a month due to the heated exchange between Trump and Musk because of the passing of the "Big Beautiful bill."

In the latest development, after the bill is approved by Congress, Musk announced Saturday that the party would be called the “America Party” and could focus “on just 2 or 3 Senate seats and 8 to 10 House districts.”

Trump pushed back Sunday against tech billionaire Elon Musk’s move to form a new political party, calling it "ridiculous."

Last week, Musk had stepped up his opposition to Trump’s "Big, beautiful bill," pledging to launch a new political party if the controversial omnibus bill is approved by Congress.

Trump fired back at him by claiming that the billionaire will “head back home to South Africa” if federal subsidies on electric vehicles are cut.

Later, Trump also said he will look into deporting Musk as their feud reignited over a Republican-backed spending bill.

“I don’t know. We’ll have to take a look," Trump told reporters when asked if he would deport Musk.

The relationship between Trump and Musk, once marked by collaboration and mutual support, has deteriorated into a highly public and acrimonious feud since Musk started criticizing the bill in late May.