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Musk’s Tesla swerves between China, the SEC and solar panels?

2 years ago babelfish

Musk's Tesla swerves between China, the SEC and solar panels?

The SEC has launched an investigation into Tesla, accused of hiding the risks on its solar panels, which are considered flammable, from customers and investors. Meanwhile Musk winks at China …

Spin for Tesla on Wall Street.

Shares in Elon Musk's electric car company lost more than 6% on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday. The collapse came after Reuters reported that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) – the US federal agency that watches over the stock exchange – opened an investigation into Tesla over whistleblower complaints about solar panel defects.

However, Tesla picked up speed after news of the investigation.

And not the only one about Musk's company. Also yesterday, the New York Times also reported that Tesla engineers questioned the safety of the company's autopilot system, which is already the subject of an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

As Reuters reports, concerns about Tesla solar panel fires were previously disclosed, but this is the first investigative report from the SEC.

In the meantime, again yesterday Tesla's patron, Musk, also entered the moment of tension between the United States and China, winking at the latter.

At the Wall Street Journal CEO Council Summit, Musk targeted a legislative proposal signed by the Biden administration. According to Tesla's founding billionaire, the United States Congress is not expected to pass the bill to increase subsidies for electric vehicles (EVs).

At the same time, he argued that China is adapting to its growing position as a dominant world power. According to the Journal , Tesla's number one, often critical of US authorities, including President Biden, has emerged as a high-profile Chinese Communist Party cheerleader.

All the details.

SEC INVESTIGATION HITS (JUST) THE TITLE

News of the SEC investigation initially sent Tesla shares down 6.4% on Monday to $ 950.5. That is the lowest level in more than two months, down 23% from the highs ($ 1,229.9) of November 4th. However, the automaker's stock balanced its decline to close 0.6% with a market value of $ 1.01 trillion.

WHAT THE FORMER TESLA QUALITY MANAGER REVEALED

The investigation comes after Steven Henkes, a former Tesla solar field quality manager, filed a lawsuit against Musk's company in 2019.

Henkes was fired in 2020 and sued Tesla, claiming he was fired in retaliation for raising safety concerns.

THE RISKS OF FIRE ASSOCIATED WITH SOLAR PANELS

Henkes says Tesla and SolarCity, which Tesla acquired in 2016, failed to warn customers and shareholders of the fire hazards associated with faulty electrical connectors on solar panel systems. The complaint alleges that Tesla deceived customers by telling them that the company simply needed to perform maintenance on the systems, rather than informing them of potential fire hazards.

“The fears about possible fires of Tesla's solar systems are not an absolute novelty, but this is the first investigation opened by the Securities and Exchange Commission” underlines Il Sole 24 Ore.

SLIDING UP FOR TESLA ACTIONS, FIRST ON …

As Bloomberg reconstructs , Tesla stock has fluctuated a lot in recent months.

Tesla shares are up 43% this year, compared to a 22% rise in the S&P 500 Index. Most of those gains came from an October surge after a spate of positive news, including strong third quarter results and a large order from car rental company Hertz Global Holdings Inc.

… THEN DOWN

However, the steady dumping of shares by company CEO Elon Musk, who sold more than $ 10 billion worth of shares, was also a drag on investor sentiment, Bloomberg points out. Given that Musk still has a long way to go before he sells 10% of his stake, as discussed in a Twitter poll in early November, Tesla's stock could continue to be volatile in the coming weeks.

THE COMMENT OF THE ANALYSTS

“The solar business has been a disaster for Tesla's history and Wall Street continues to be frustrated with this segment of the business,” Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives told Bloomberg.

MUSK Winks His Eye To China

Meanwhile, Tesla's boss continues to draw attention to himself, this time to come between Washington and Beijing by negotiating for the latter.

At the CEO Council Summit organized yesterday by the Wall Street Journal , Musk took the opportunity to attack the Biden administration and reach out to Beijing.

Elon Musk targeted a legislative proposal signed by the Biden administration. He then claims that China is still adapting to its emerging role as one of the most powerful countries in the world.

Tesla's boss, who is often critical of US authorities, including President Biden, has emerged as a high-profile cheerleader of the Communist Party of China. He said the company has good relations with China, home to Tesla's largest production vehicle factory, ”the Journal commented.

THE RELATIONSHIP WITH BEIJING

According to the New York Times , the Chinese government has embraced Tesla with open arms. Beijing has offered Musk's company low-cost land, loans, tax benefits and subsidies, writes the American newspaper. It even allowed Tesla to run its own plant without a local partner, a first for a foreign automaker in China.

The approach worked for both sides. Tesla's Shanghai factory, built within a year in 2019, has surpassed its Fremont, California, plant in production, Musk told the company's shareholders meeting in October.

THE LUTTWAK TWEET

Finally, there are those in the United States who argue that the tycoon Musk "should be brought back into line".

Tesla's boss is too pro-Chinese according to American political scientist and strategy expert, Edward Luttwak.

"Moguls enriched by US government handouts snap to attention when the Chinese Communist Party summons them to support its propaganda, for example E Musk," Excellent meeting with high-level leaders in China. Very thoughtful for the long-term future ”. Such servility requires a punitive response, ”Luttwak tweeted.

This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/smartcity/tesla-di-musk-sbanda-fra-cina-sec-e-pannelli-solari/ on Tue, 07 Dec 2021 11:06:51 +0000.