Musk: "US-China Tensions Must Be Taken Seriously... Recession Within 12 Months"

Musk, US CNBC Interview
"Fed Is Too Slow to Lower Interest Rates"

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, recently stated that the rising tensions between the U.S. and China and China's increasing threats toward Taiwan should be taken seriously. He also emphasized the need for interest rate cuts, predicting that a recession will materialize within the next 12 months.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In an interview with CNBC on the 16th (local time), Musk was asked if he was concerned about the growing hostility between the U.S. and China. He responded, "It should be everyone's concern."

Regarding the possibility of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, he said, "China's official policy is that Taiwan must be unified," adding, "There is no need to read between the lines." He continued, "The Chinese economy and the global economy are like conjoined twins," and "Just as it is difficult to separate these twins, if a Chinese invasion of Taiwan occurs, the situation will be equally serious. In fact, it will be worse for many other companies than for Tesla."

On current business in China, he stated, "There are some constraints in expanding business in China, so we are producing as many cars as possible," clarifying, "It is not a demand issue."

He also added that Tesla depends on Taiwan's semiconductors, and Apple is in the same situation.

Furthermore, he predicted that Tesla will face difficult times due to a consumer recession caused by interest rate hikes over the next 12 months. He stressed the need for interest rate cuts, saying the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) is moving too slowly to lower rates during an economic slowdown, which will hurt consumer demand. Nevertheless, he expressed confidence that Tesla can effectively adjust prices using its "real-time demand information."

Additionally, he strongly criticized remote work, stating that he takes only 2 to 3 days off per year and sleeps only 6 hours a day. Regarding criticisms that his various posts on Twitter cause losses to the company, he replied, "I will say what I want to say," adding, "If the result is losing money, then so be it."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.