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Tesla stock spikes on China delivery figures, then cools down for no reason
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) stock spiked nearly 3% this morning after positive news from China that effectively debunked rumors of declining sales figures in May. However, the increase in price was short-lived, as the stock dropped back down to the $600 level after opening at $623.01, despite no negative news being reported regarding Tesla this morning.
Earlier today, the Chinese Passenger Car Association (CPCA) reported Tesla delivered a total of 33,463 vehicles in May. Tesla delivered 21,936 domestically after being produced at Tesla’s Giga Shanghai production facility. The remaining 11,527 were exported to other areas, including Europe, where Tesla started shipping vehicles from China in January.
Tesla China sales rise 30% in May, definitively debunks reports of weak demand
The figures released by the CPCA earlier today directly contradict reports from earlier this month, when The Information stated that an internal source familiar with Tesla’s EV sales in China indicated the electric automaker’s orders had slumped significantly in May compared to April. The figures indicated Tesla had only 9,800 orders in May, suggesting a decrease by as much as 50%. The news sent Tesla stock on a steep decline after the report hit mainstream media, who started to aggregate the story as fact.
The report was met with criticism just a few days later by the CPCA’s Secretary General Cui Dongshu, who said (via Global Times):
“Placed orders cannot equal the sales number in one month. Usually, monthly sales are accumulated units of orders over previous months, so the immediate results in May might not truly reflect whether the recently reported accidents have had any real impact on Tesla’s sales.”
Cui suggested that if Tesla were experiencing decreasing order and sales figures, they wouldn’t be identifiable until July or August.
After Tesla shares spiked this morning on the news of the positive delivery figures in China, the surge cooled down. Analyst Gary Black attributed the drop off to two things: Traders buying on the rumor of low delivery figures, and now selling after shares rose when the CPCA released positive news this morning, or the possibility of Bitcoin’s plummet affecting Tesla’s shares.
1/ Traders bought the China rumor; now selling the news.
2/ #btc collapsing again$tsla https://t.co/NQzxzyoQZE— Gary Black (@garyblack00) June 8, 2021
There is a chance that Jerome Guillen, Tesla’s now-former Head of Heavy Trucking, leaving the company could be affecting the price.
Tesla’s rocky road in China
Tesla has had somewhat of a tumultuous relationship in China over the past few months. After growing concerns of security issues due to Tesla’s external cameras, several State-owned businesses and entities banned the company’s cars on their premises in fear of a security breach that could take pictures of potentially sensitive information. Tesla stated that its cabin cameras are not active, and Elon Musk stated that Tesla’s vehicles were not being used to spy on Chinese entities. “If Tesla used cars to spy in China or anywhere, we would get shut down,” Musk said.
In the following months, Tesla would battle numerous reports of brake failures by numerous owners in China. The most public occurrence of this happening was at the Shanghai Auto Show, where a Model 3 owner claimed her brakes failed and led to an accident. Tesla offered to have a third-party company complete testing on the car to determine the cause of the accident. The owner declined this.
Other owners in China have also come out with similar claims, all of them eventually being debunked or disproven in the following days or weeks. In response to the claims, Tesla created a “Special Handling Team” in China to deter and navigate through false narratives related to the company’s products. Tesla said the team would “meet the demands of car owners and strive to satisfy car owners while complying with laws and regulations.”
Tesla Stock
Tesla shares have dropped 14.49% so far in 2021. Interestingly, Tesla has continued its trend of strong financials and delivery and production performances, citing Quarter-over-Quarter growth in both of the company’s Earnings Calls that have taken place this year. In addition, Q1 2021 proved to be Tesla’s biggest quarter yet in terms of production and delivery figures, despite only manufacturing two of its four currently-offered automobiles. The Model S and Model X lines at Tesla’s Fremont production facility were being retooled during the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021 as the flagship models were being “refreshed.”
At the time of writing, Tesla shares were trading at $601.16.
Disclosure: Joey Klender is a TSLA Shareholder.
Elon Musk has firmly denied recent media reports suggesting that SpaceX has reduced its target valuation for an upcoming initial public offering.
The denial came directly from the SpaceX and Tesla frontman on his social media platform X, where he responded with a single word, “False,” to a post from ZeroHedge that cited Bloomberg sources.
This swift rebuttal underscores Musk’s ongoing effort to manage speculation surrounding one of the most anticipated market debuts in recent history.
False
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 29, 2026
According to the disputed reports, SpaceX had lowered its IPO valuation goal to at least $1.8 trillion from previous ambitions exceeding $2 trillion.
The claims emerged amid growing anticipation for the company’s confidential S-1 filing, which positions it for a potential public listing as early as June.
Some had pointed to strong revenue growth, particularly from the Starlink satellite internet service, which contributed heavily to the firm’s 2025 figures of $18.7 billion. Yet challenges persist in other areas, including substantial investments and losses tied to ambitious projects like Starship development and artificial intelligence initiatives, which plan to make life multiplanetary eventually.
Musk’s response highlights a pattern in which he actively counters what he views as inaccurate portrayals of his companies’ trajectories.
SpaceX, already valued privately at extraordinary levels, stands as a cornerstone of Musk’s empire alongside Tesla and xAI. The entrepreneur has long emphasized the transformative potential of reusable rockets and global broadband access, factors that fuel investor enthusiasm despite operational hurdles.
By rejecting the valuation downgrade narrative, Musk signals confidence in SpaceX’s fundamentals and its readiness for public markets on terms favorable to its long-term vision. People have been waiting a very long time to invest in SpaceX, and the valuation, as well as the introductory share price, is not going to need adjusting.
They’ll have plenty of suitors.
This episode reflects broader dynamics in the technology sector, where rumors often swirl around high-profile entities. Musk’s direct engagement with media narratives serves to maintain transparency and control the narrative around his ventures.
As SpaceX prepares for greater scrutiny in public markets, the founder’s denial reinforces optimism about its prospects. Supporters argue that the company’s innovative edge positions it for enduring success, far beyond short-term valuation debates. With the denial now public, attention turns to forthcoming regulatory filings that could provide clearer insights into SpaceX’s strategy and financial health.
The coming weeks promise to reveal more about how SpaceX will transition into a publicly traded powerhouse.
Tesla’s dreams of operating a fully autonomous ride-hailing platform just took a massive step toward reality, as two separate events have indicated the company is perhaps closer than ever to achieving self-driving as a product.
On Thursday, Tesla was granted authorization by the State of Texas to operate driverless vehicles in a commercial manner. On May 28, Senate Bill 2807, passed by the 89th Texas Legislature, took effect after being passed back on September 1, 2025.
The bill establishes a statewide regulatory framework requiring authorization from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles for companies to operate automated vehicles commercially on Texas roads.
This covers driverless, or SAE Level 4+, operations for passenger transport, meaning Robotaxi, or freight.
Tesla and other companies can self-certify their vehicles and tech as long as they:
- Operate in compliance with Texas traffic laws
- Maintain proper registration, title, and insurance
- Use compliant automated driving systems
- Record onboard activity and handle system failures and glitches safely.
The new authorization, which was first reported by James Stephenson on X, allows companies to utilize their own processes to determine if their vehicles are ready to operate without drivers.
🚨BREAKING:
Tesla has been authorized by the State of Texas to operate driverless vehicles commercially under the new law that took effect today, May 28th, 2026. Tesla has officially self-certified the software running on its robotaxis as Level 4. $TSLA pic.twitter.com/KSJdsvlaW5— James Stephenson (@ICannot_Enough) May 28, 2026
It is a rule that expedites the entire approval process, keeping agencies out of a usually long, lengthy, and frustrating task that is essential to technological advancements. It essentially means Tesla can launch commercial Robotaxi operations at this point.
On the very same day, Tesla continued the momentum as CEO Elon Musk shared a video of Cybercab units autonomously driving off the property at Gigafactory Texas. This is a major step in the story of the Cybercab.
Mass production of the Cybercab started at Giga Texas in April, and it is already heading out of the factory on its own.
Cybercab driving itself out of the GigaTexas factory pic.twitter.com/EwAMVVDjYy
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 28, 2026
These two major events mark a drastic step forward in Tesla’s progress toward Cybercab and the permissions it needs to operate a self-driving ride-hailing service. Tesla is now able to operate autonomously under Texas law by self-certifying, and with the potentially imminent rollout of Cybercab, Tesla’s autonomous dreams are starting to take serious shape.
Elon Musk
The Tesla and SpaceX merger everyone is talking about is quietly building
Tesla and SpaceX may be closer to merging than Wall Street or either company is admitting.
Elon Musk has reportedly discussed merging Tesla and SpaceX with people close to him, according to CNBC, which cited sources familiar with the conversation. Tesla employees have long expected such a transaction and the topic is openly discussed internally, according to internal sources. With SpaceX is days away from kicking off its Wall Street roadshow for what could be the largest IPO in market history, this would be the first time the company will have public market currency to execute a stock-for-stock deal with Tesla.
The financial logic for a merger would make sense. A combined SpaceX and Tesla would create a conglomerate spanning rockets, satellites, electric vehicles, AI infrastructure, and energy storage valued at roughly $3.35 trillion to $3.6 trillion based on SpaceX’s IPO target range and Tesla’s current market capitalization. The two companies are already more intertwined than most people realize. SpaceX bought $697 million worth of Tesla Megapack systems for xAI data centers and $131 million worth of Cybertrucks. Tesla invested $2 billion in xAI, which subsequently merged with SpaceX. Past transactions also include Tesla selling solar equipment and parts to SpaceX, and SpaceX helping with Cybertruck materials.
Will Tesla join the fold? Predicting a triple merger with SpaceX and xAI
Musk himself signaled where this was heading in November 2025 when he posted on X, “My companies are, surprisingly in some ways, trending towards convergence.” Tesla and SpaceX announced a joint semiconductor fabrication facility in Austin called Terafab on the Gigafactory Texas campus, covering two advanced chip factories, with one serving Tesla’s AI needs for vehicles and Optimus robots, the other targeting space-based data centers under SpaceX’s infrastructure vision.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives places the probability of a merger at 80% to 90% with a target completion in the first half of 2027. The mechanics of a deal became possible the moment SpaceX filed its S-1. Legal experts said a merger likely would not spark antitrust issues but would raise concerns among shareholders in each company, with questions around which company would be the parent, how a stock swap would take place, and who determines the appropriate price. Musk holds about 20% of Tesla’s equity but controls 85.1% of SpaceX’s voting power through a super-voting share class, meaning he would largely be negotiating the terms with himself.
Not everyone is convinced the timing is imminent. Traders on Kalshi place only 33% odds that a merger will happen before May 2027. The more immediate concern for Tesla shareholders is whether the SpaceX IPO pulls capital and Musk’s attention away from Tesla before any merger consolidates the upside for both.
What is clear is that the structural groundwork is already being laid. The Terafab announcement, the xAI merger, the shared supply chain, the cross-company balance sheet transactions, and now the IPO all point in the same direction. Whether the merger follows in 2027 or later, the two companies are already operating more like divisions of a single entity than independent competitors.
Elon Musk strikes down reports on SpaceX IPO rumors
Tesla’s Robotaxi dreams just took a massive step toward reality
