Tesla Drops 14% as Trump-Musk Feud Escalates

Tesla fell 14%, erasing $150 billion in value after President Trump threatened to cut SpaceX contracts amid a growing public rift with Elon Musk. The Nasdaq, S&P 500, and Dow all closed lower ahead of today's US payrolls report, while bitcoin dropped 4% and Asian tech shares tracked Wall Street losses. The euro climbed to a six-week high of $1.1495 after the ECB cut rates but suggested it was nearing the end of its easing cycle.

Equities

The FTSE 100 rose 0.1% on Thursday, marking a fifth consecutive day of gains, lifted by strength in mining stocks as metal prices rose. Shares in copper and precious metal miners climbed, with the sector up 1.8% and 3.5% respectively.

Dr Martens surged 25.8% after forecasting a return to profit growth in the current financial year. Wizz Air dropped sharply, falling 27.9%, after reporting a 62% fall in annual operating profit due to aircraft being grounded. Other airline stocks also edged lower, with easyJet and IAG both down around 1%.

WPP and Sainsbury’s also slipped, trading without entitlement to dividends. The FTSE 250 fell 0.2%, weighed by weakness across midcap travel and retail names.

In the US, all three major indices closed lower. The Nasdaq fell 0.83% to 19,298.45, the S&P 500 dropped 0.53% to 5,939.30, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.25% to 42,319.74.

The sharpest move came from Tesla, which tumbled 14% and wiped around $150 billion off its market value following a public dispute between CEO Elon Musk and President Trump. The row centres on Musk’s criticism of Trump’s tax policies, including the rollback of electric vehicle incentives. The feud has contributed to Tesla falling in four of the past five sessions.

Brown-Forman, the owner of Jack Daniel’s, fell 18% after forecasting lower annual revenue and profit. Procter & Gamble shed 1.9% following news it will cut 7,000 jobs—around 6% of its workforce—over the next two years as part of a restructuring.

The US market was also weighed by weaker private payroll and services data, and jobless claims rose for a second week, fuelling concerns about a slowdown. Kansas City Fed President Jeff Schmid warned that tariffs could push inflation higher, which may influence the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates steady at its upcoming June meeting.

Forex & Commodities

The dollar fell against the euro on Thursday after the European Central Bank cut interest rates but signalled it may be nearing the end of its easing cycle. ECB President Christine Lagarde said the bank was responding to subdued inflation and weaker economic prospects, but gave no firm timeline for further changes. The euro rose as high as $1.1495, a six-week high, and was last up 0.18%. The dollar index slipped 0.09% to 98.71, on track for its second daily loss. Sterling was 0.11% stronger against the dollar. The greenback made gains against safe-haven currencies, rising 0.51% to 143.49 yen and 0.16% to 0.819 Swiss francs.

Gold rose 0.3% to $3,363.33 an ounce on Friday and has gained 2.3% this week. Futures climbed 0.4% to $3,387. Weaker US economic data, including a rise in jobless claims to a seven-month high, has supported bullion prices ahead of Friday’s non-farm payrolls report. Economists expect 130,000 jobs to have been added in May, with the unemployment rate steady at 4.2%. Federal Reserve officials have signalled inflation remains a greater concern than a slowing jobs market, reinforcing expectations that rates will stay on hold.

In other metals, silver eased 0.7% to $35.92 but remained close to a 13-year high. Platinum gained 1.7% to $1,149.85 and palladium was up 0.7% at $1,012.60.

Brent crude edged down 0.2% to $65.23 a barrel and WTI fell 0.2% to $63.25, though both were set for their first weekly rise in three weeks. Brent is up 2.1% this week, WTI up 4%. Oil was supported by renewed US-China trade talks and supply concerns linked to possible sanctions on Venezuela and tension in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia lowered July crude prices for Asia to near two-month lows after OPEC+ agreed to raise output.