Tesla shares fall 8.1% as Elon Musk fights shareholders on Twitter

On Tuesday, Musk battled with disgruntled shareholders and affirmed that he would remain as head of Twitter in the short term.

The electric car company has lost a place in the rankings of the world's largest companies because of the falling stock price. Exxon Mobil Corp., an oil and gas company, had a market cap of $439 billion, which was more than the market cap of electric car maker,Tesla.

Last year, it was one of the few U.S. companies with a market value greater than $1 trillion that was climbing. The company has a market cap of $869 billion. It was the first time in over a year that the market cap of the company fell below $500 billion.

Since the end of October, when Musk took over as CEO, the company's share price has plummeted. All the way back in April, Musk said he would be buying the company.

The collapse in share prices is blamed on Musk.

The value of having no CEO is reflected in the stock price of the company.

Last week, Leo KoGuan, the third-largest shareholder inTesla, said that the company needed a full-time CEO.

More than half of the people who responded to the survey said that Musk should step down. Musk responded to the poll on Tuesday by saying that he would only resign from the social media company after finding someone foolish enough to take the job.

Last week, Musk disclosed in a security filing that he had sold 20 million of his shares in the company.

The Fed

Musk said in his reply that interest rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve were to blame for the troubles of the company.

As bank savings account interest rates start to approach stock market returns, which are not guaranteed, people will increasingly move their money out of stocks into cash, thus causing stocks to drop.

A looming economic slowdown, if not a possible recession, is likely to affect demand for electric cars, which in turn is likely to cause investors to be more optimistic about the future of the company.

According to a source at the company, a hiring freeze and a wave of layoffs are on the way.

Tech stocks have been hit hard by inflation and interest rates. Tech companies have seen their share prices decline. Over the last four years, Amazon and Meta's share prices have fallen. The shares ofTesla are down over the same period.

The stock market has not fallen as much. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 have fallen in value over the last two years.

China sales

There may be problems in China forTesla. One of the most important markets for the electric-car maker is China, where it sells half as many cars as it does in the US. Cars are produced from the gigafactory ofTesla.

In December, it was reported that the company is cutting shifts, delaying hires, and cutting production at its factory in China. The electric car company slashed Chinese prices in October in response to fierce competition from BYD and other local manufacturers.

China is currently in an economic slump, spurred by widespread lockdowns in November, followed by a surge in COVID cases in recent weeks, even as Beijing begins to lift containment measures. Consumers in China might not buy new electric vehicles because of uncertainty. The end of subsidies for electric cars at the end of the year could deter Chinese consumers from buying a newTesla.

The China Passenger Car Association reported that Chinese car sales fell in November. According to a report, deliveries of the car increased 40% from the previous month.