Todd Lassa, Detroit Bureau Chief for Automobile Magazine, discusses a recent downgrade to Tesla's Model 3 outlook for the fourth quarter as Elon Musk promises a pickup truck and new features to fans.
Lassa adds that Musk's own ambition might be beginning to catch up with him as the Model 3 has not yet proven to be profitable. He notes its major miss of deliveries in the third quarter as well.
Is there a place in the market for a Tesla pickup truck? Three major manufacturers are making $90 billion in that market, but Lassa notes how inexpensive a Ford F-150 is in comparison to the cost of a Tesla truck. He estimates that it would be several years before a car like that would become profitable for the company.
Chair Jerome Powell says the Federal Reserve only expects to cut rates once in 2024. But at least, as one economist says, ‘rate hikes are off the table.’
With the Fed likely set to leave rates unchanged, lower and middle income Americans will continue dealing with higher credit card interest and expenses.
Markets soared in May after Nvidia’s Q1 success, but concerns over slowing consumer spending, especially among middle—and lower-income groups, loom large.