Teslas net income plunges 71% as Elon Musk confirms major work setting up DOGE is done

Elon Musk said Tuesday he would dial back his role as President Trump’s cost-cutting czar — sending beaten-down Tesla shares surging despite the company reporting that its net income cratered 71% for the quarter.The embattled billionaire told analysts on a post-earnings call that his “time allocation to DOGE will drop significantly,” referring to the polarizing Department of Government Efficiency.“I will be allocating far more of my time to Tesla now that the major work of establishing the Department of Government Efficiency is done,” he said after the markets closed..Shares rose 4% in after-hours trading as Musk delivered the news to analysts, many of whom have attributed Tesla’s struggles to public backlash from the mogul’s close ties to Trump and tough overseas competition.Musk insisted he would continue to work with the administration to combat “waste and fraud” and would “spend a day or two per week on government matters for as long as the president would like me to do so.”As The Post has reported, Musk’s exit was already in the works due to federal rules that mandate special government employees (SGEs) can only remain at their post for 130 consecutive days.That would place his last day on May 30.His return to fully focusing on Tesla can’t come fast enough.

Shares are down nearly 40% year-to-date.They closed at 237.97 on Tuesday, below the 242.84 the stock fetched the day before Trump won the election.

It had soared to 479.86 in mid-December.The EV pioneer suffered significant sales declines in some of its biggest markets, including Democrat-heavy California, the nation’s largest EV market, according to the California New Car Dealers Association.It’s market share for all EV registrations in the Golden State dropped to 44%, compared with 56% the previous year, the trade group reported.Sales have also plummeted in China because of Trump’s trade war, as well as Europe after Musk voiced support for right-wing political candidat...