AUSTIN, Texas — Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted on Monday to comment on rising inflation amid the Ukraine/Russia crisis.
Musk said his companies are seeing "significant recent inflation pressure in raw materials and logistics," and they're not the only ones.
He also tweeted the link to a Financial Times article in the thread, which said global commodity prices are at the highest level since 2008. Aluminum and coal prices have also increased, as have metals used elsewhere in the car, like steel and copper. Tires and computer chips are also in short supply in the industry, the later of which Musk told investors was a "huge problem" last year.
In 2021, Musk tweeted that Tesla was increasing prices of car models due to "major supply chain price pressure industrywide," after a fan asked him on Twitter about the increases. In 2021, the Model 3's price increased by $2,000 and the price of the Model Y SUV by $5,000.
It's not clear what Tesla pays for raw materials under its contracts. In the 2021 move, Tesla removed the lumbar support feature for the front passenger seat from the Model 3 and Model Y to cut costs. Musk said data showed the feature wasn't worth the additional cost or weight.
Earlier this year, Musk answered a Ukrainian official's plea to activate Starlink internet service in Ukraine. In late February, Musk reported that Starlink service was active in Ukraine and that more terminals were en route.
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