Elon Musk has dismissed a media report claiming electric vehicle (EV) company Tesla is considering selling its China business, even as the speculation threatens to renew scrutiny over the American carmaker’s dependence on its main manufacturing hub in Shanghai.“This has never even come up in a discussion ever,” Musk, who is CEO of both Tesla and commercial aerospace giant SpaceX, posted on his X social media account on Friday. “Absurdly fake news.”The remarks by the world’s richest person came after the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that Tesla was considering separating its China operations from its global businesses ahead of an expected merger with SpaceX, which could eventually lead to the sale or closure of its Shanghai-based Gigafactory.
The WSJ, citing unidentified sources, said Musk wanted to reorganise Tesla with a “laser” to address potential conflicts of interest arising from SpaceX’s role as a major US defence contractor amid US-China tensions.
Technically, any sale of Tesla’s operations in the world’s second-largest economy cannot be completed unless the American company receives the green light from Chinese regulators.
Analysts said Tesla’s Shanghai assembly, which accounted for 52 per cent of its total vehicles delivered to global customers in 2025, would not be easy to dispose of. China is Tesla’s second-largest market worldwide after the US.