Tesla’s Elon Musk expects ‘a year of difficulty’ for the global economy – MarketWatch

Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Elon Musk said late Tuesday he foresees a year of difficulty for the global economy, with lots of companies going bankrupt, and said that the EV maker will not be immune to the downdraft, even as he teased two new products for Tesla in the future.

Its is going to be a challenging 12 months, and Tesla is not immune to the global economic environment, Musk said at the Tesla TSLA shareholder meeting in Austin, Texas, where he spoke for nearly two hours on a wide range of topics.

The macroeconomic environment will be difficult for at least the next 12 months, Musk said. A turnaround, however, would come in the following 12 months, and long-term investors in Tesla will do extremely well, he said.

A shareholder in the audience asked about rumors that Musk would be about to step down as CEO, ending with say it aint so. Musk responded with it aint so, but offered no further details.

The executive also surprised the audience by saying that Tesla, which famously has eschewed traditional advertising, will now do it. We will try advertising and see how it goes, he said.

Musk teased two new products to be unveiled in the future, and promised more details at a yet-to-be-detailed launch event. The unnamed products would be head and shoulders above anything else currently in the market, he said.

Tesla has been working on a next-generation vehicle that would be cheaper than its current offerings, but nothing has been detailed.

Musk promised a revamp for the Tesla Roadster in 2024, although he said that wasnt a firm commitment. A new Roadster will not be a huge contributor to revenue, but it will be sick, he said.

The CEOs remarks were largely upbeat, to the applause of the shareholders at the event. Musk also spoke about autonomous driving and Teslas plans for alternative energy, and confirmed the Cybertruck, Teslas electric pickup truck which has been delayed a couple of times, is on track to be sold this year.

We will make as many as people want them eventually, but the production ramp will be slow at first, he said.

See also: Rivian, Lucid and Fisker navigate a treacherous road as they struggle to match Teslas success

Earlier, a preliminary tally indicated that shareholders voted yes on the proposals endorsed by the company, including approving the nomination of former Chief Technology Officer JB Straubel to the board.

Some shareholders had questioned Straubels nomination, saying that Teslas board already had too many ties with Musk.

A failed proposal, which had been introduced in previous years and called for a third-party audit into Teslas cobalt supply chain to prevent child and forced labor, ended up being embraced by Musk.

You know what, we will do a third-party audit, although he said that Tesla products dont use that much cobalt.

Tesla shares gained 1.2% in after-hours trading. So far this year, Tesla has gained 35%, compared with gains of around 7% for the S&P 500 index SPX .

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Tesla's Elon Musk expects 'a year of difficulty' for the global economy - MarketWatch

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