Elon Musk helped elect Donald Trump. The move boosted Musk’s personal fortune to dizzying heights. Yet Tesla? Tesla is bleeding cash per unit. It is a strange disconnect. His wealth grows while his company’s earnings shrink.
A recent breakdown by Nikkei Asia pulled apart the financials of seven major auto brands. They used hard data from QUICK FactSet alongside company reports. The list included the top five global sellers plus Tesla and BYD. The data tells a story about US tariffs and how they are chewing into margins.
Still Winning By A Slimmer Margin
Let’s look at the numbers for the four quarters ending in March 2026. Tesla averaged $2,140 profit per car sold globally. It sits at the top of that specific chart. Leading the other six manufacturers.
But do not mistake this for dominance.
That $2,140 figure is a drop from last year. Back in 2024, Tesla pulled in $3,438 per vehicle during the same window. That is a nearly 40 percent decline. Tesla holds the number one spot for the fifth year in a row, but the throne is shaky. The cushion used to be much thicker. In fiscal years 2022 and 923 profits hit over $6,000 a car. Those days feel distant.
“Tesla’s income from selling regulatory carbon credits too is declining,” noted the analysis, pointing to easier environmental rules.
Several forces are working against Musk. The $7,500 US federal EV tax credit ended. Sales cooled as a result. Chinese competitors are getting better faster than Tesla can lower prices. On top of that revenue from carbon credits collapsed from $2.9 billion down to $1.7 billion. When you combine those losses the math gets ugly.
Toyota Creeps Up Close
Toyota took second place. Roughly $2,104 in profit per vehicle. That figure dropped 20 percent year over year but not by the catastrophic amount Tesla faced. Toyota’s lineup is heavier on hybrids than pure electrics. This shielded them somewhat from the EV slump. The gap between the two giants is now barely $40. Twelve months ago the gap was wider than $600.
Why rely so heavily on a single technology?
Competition is fierce everywhere. But the data suggests Tesla is no longer the untouchable luxury of efficiency it once appeared to be. Margins compress when competition heats up. Especially when political winds shift policy.
