Elon Musk Concludes China Trip With Promising Talks As Tesla Expands In The Country

In this photo illustration, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis joins Elon Musk on Twitter Spaces to formally announce his run for the Republican nomination for president to on May 24, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. The announcement was hampered by technical difficulties as more than a half million people signed on to listen. PHOTO BY SCOTT OLSON/BENZINGA

Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk left Shanghai on Thursday morning local time after his first visit to China in three years and returned to the U.S. and Twitter after two days.

Musk landed in China on Tuesday and met with Foreign Minister Qin Gang in Beijing, saying Tesla was ready to expand business in China.

Musk also dined with Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd chairman Zeng Yuqun and met with China’s commerce and industry ministers during the trip.

As per ministry statements, Musk exchanged views on electric vehicles with the industry minister and discussed Tesla’s advancement in China with the commerce minister, reported Reuters.

On Wednesday evening, the CEO visited Tesla’s Shanghai factory accompanied by the head of global manufacturing Tom Zhu.

 “Playing nice in the sandbox in Beijing is something the Street is laser-focused on to make sure there are no disruptions to Tesla’s expansion,” said Dan Ives about Musk’s trip, an analyst from Wedbush. 

Musk also had a meeting with Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang, the sixth highest-ranked leader in the Politburo Standing Committee, China’s top governing body led by President Xi Jinping, Reuters reported, citing a source. Back in 2019, Musk had a one-on-one meeting with former premier Li Keqiang.

Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk (in white) boards his private jet before departing from Beijing Capital International Airport on May 31, 2023. Musk praised China’s “vitality and promise” on May 31, Beijing said, during a trip to the Chinese capital in which he has met multiple government officials and reportedly declared he will expand his business there. PHOTO BY JADE GAO/BENZINGA

Throughout the trip, Musk has been quiet on his social media platform Twitter. According to a report by Bloomberg, the quiet Musk has maintained on Twitter on his China trip is the longest since June 2022 when he was considering buying the platform. Though Twitter is banned in China, it is still accessible via VPN.

The billionaire entrepreneur, however, broke his silence early on Thursday with a post praising SpaceX.

“Tesla’s relationship with China continues to look cozy heading into the second half of 2023, with Shanghai party chief Chen Jining reportedly encouraging Elon Musk to expand his business in China,” said one Twitter user from OilPrice.com.

While visiting at Tesla’s plant in Shanghai, Musk met with Chen Jinping, the city’s party secretary who welcomed the company for investments in the city. 

Musk ended the trip to China without signing any Tesla-related deals.

Produced in association with Benzinga

Edited by Alberto Arellano and Saba Fatima