Elon Musk Showers More Praises On China, Says Tesla Will Continue To Invest In The Country

Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk lauded China’s extensive digitalization efforts across industries, including automotive, for the second time this month, and said the electric vehicle maker would further invest in the country at an online conference being held in Wuzhen on Friday, CNBC reported.

What Happened: Musk made the comments at the World Internet Conference hosted by the Cyberspace Administration of China in a pre-recorded video.

The billionaire entrepreneur said, as per his observation, China deploys substantial resources and efforts to bring the latest digital technologies in different industries, including the automobile industry, making it a global leader in digitalization.

“Tesla will continue to expand our investment and R&D efforts in China,” he added, as per the report. 

See Also: Elon Musk's Tesla Shanghai To Make 300K Cars By Jan-Sept

Why It Matters: A week ago, Musk had praised China’s competitiveness in the automotive market and said he had a “great deal of respect” for the automakers from the country.

Musk has been trying to improve Tesla’s sullied image in China after facing negative press and subsequent regulatory scrutiny earlier this year. China had earlier this year restricted or banned the use of Tesla’s electric vehicles at some state and military facilities.

China is a key global market for Tesla outside the United States. The Palo Alto, California-based company faces tough competition from homegrown electric vehicle makers such as Nio Inc NIO, Li Auto Inc LI, and Xpeng Inc XPENG in the country.

Tesla has invested heavily in China, including building a gigafactory, which it says has been established as an export hub. 

Price Action: Tesla shares closed 2.75% higher at $774.39 on Friday.

See Also: Elon Musk Says He Has 'Great Deal Of Respect' For Chinese Automakers, Praises Country For Attitude Toward EVs

Photo: Courtesy of Nvidia Corp. via Flickr