Elon Musk has become a severe casualty of Donald Trump’s tariff war after losing more than a tenth of his fortune in less than a week.
The world’s richest man and president’s senior advisor has seen his net worth plunge below $300 billion (£235 billion).
It comes just four months after the Tesla founder and X owner became the first individual to cross the $400 billion (£313 billion) mark.
According to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, Mr Musk has lost $44 billion (£34 billion) since last Thursday due to Tesla’s continued stock decline.
Shares in his electric carmaker dropped 5 per cent on Wall Street to $221.86 on Tuesday — more than half its December high of $479.
The long-term drop is due to a combination of factors, including Tesla’s ageing lineup, competition from rivals such as Chinese manufacturer BYD, and growing unease of Mr Musk’s contrarian views.
Since January — the month Mr Trump was inaugurated as president — Mr Musk’s estimated wealth has fallen by $140 billion (£109 billion), to £290 billion (£227 billion).
Despite the major hit, Mr Musk comfortably remains the world’s richest person ahead of Amazon’s Jeff Bezos’ $192 billion (£150 billion) and Meta’s Mark Zuckerburg’s $181 billion (£141 billion) net worths.
They are among several billionaires whose fortunes have taken a hammering since last week, when Mr Trump announced “reciprocal tariffs” on around 90 countries and 10 per cent levy globally.
Previously announced 25 per cent tariffs on imported cars also came into effect last week, which Mr Musk said was “significant” for Tesla.
That is because a substantial portion of Tesla’s components, including batteries, are sourced from outside the US — particularly from China, which was hit with a 104 per cent levy on Tuesday.
Mr Musk’s alliance with Mr Trump appeared to be a match made in heaven when he was appointed as a senior adviser following the Republican’s election victory in November.
This is despite Mr Musk previously telling the president that he was “too old”, while Mr Trump said that the billionaire would be “worthless” without subsidies.
Three years and $250 million in political donations after that tense exchange, Mr Musk was appointed to head up the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and was lauded by Mr Trump as a “patriot”.
Trump Advisor Peter Navarro moments ago on @CNBC talking about Elon Musk:
— Ed Krassenstein (@EdKrassen) April 7, 2025
Elon “is not a car manufacturer. He’s a car assembler.” pic.twitter.com/hRfSsPmoOS
However, a new rift appears to be forming between Mr Musk and Mr Trump’s team over the controversial trade policy.
In a discussion with Italy’s deputy prime minister, Matteo Salvini this week, Mr Musk said he was “hoping” for no tariffs between North America and Europe.
Mr Musk also clashed with Mr Trump’s trade tsar Peter Navarro, the reported architect of the tariffs, branding him a “moron” and "dumber than a sack of bricks".
It was in response to an interview Mr Navarro gave on CNBC in which he criticised Mr Musk.
"(Mr Musk’s) not a car manufacturer. He's a car assembler, in many cases," the economist said.
Boys will be boys, and we will let their public sparring continue
The White House attempted to defuse the situation, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt telling reporters on Tuesday: “Boys will be boys, and we will let their public sparring continue.”
According to the Washington Post, Mr Musk pleaded with Mr Trump privately to roll back the tariffs despite the hope of reviving manufacturing in the United States.
Mr Trump has reportedly told his inner circle, including members of his Cabinet, that Mr Musk will be stepping back from government in the coming weeks.
He is slated to end his stint in the White House in May, when he reaches the 130-day special government employee (SGE) work cap, Politico reported.
Mr Musk told Fox News he expected to accomplish "most of the work required to reduce the deficit by $1 trillion" within the timeframe.
