The roller coaster of Musk's fortune: the chain reaction of wealth from Trump ally to adversary.

In an arena where business and politics are intertwined, Elon Musk's wealth story is like a legend of ups and downs. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk's net worth has been closely linked to Trump's political fate since August 2024, when he stood by Trump in a high-profile manner and cheered for his campaign. With Trump's successful election in November, Musk also ushered in the highlight of his wealth, with his net worth climbing from about $230 billion to $290 billion, and reaching a staggering peak of $486 billion in mid-December. This surge in wealth is not only due to the market's expectation that Trump's policies are good for technology companies, but also Tesla's leading position in the field of new energy vehicles and SpaceX's continuous breakthroughs in the aerospace field, which have contributed to Musk's wealth building.

However, the twist of fate is always sudden. In January this year, Musk became the head of the "Department of Government Efficiency" of the new US administration, which was thought to be a new journey to expand his influence, but it became the beginning of a series of challenges for him. His drastic cuts in federal spending and layoffs in federal employees have touched the cake of many vested interests and provoked a chorus of opposition. The introduction of the new tariff policy of the U.S. government has impacted the business of Tesla and other enterprises, and both market share and profits have declined. By mid-April this year, Musk's net worth had shrunk to about $300 billion, evaporating nearly $180 billion, and the rate of wealth shrinkage was staggering.

In recent days, Musk's relationship with Trump has deteriorated dramatically, and the "war of words" has continued to escalate, drawing Musk's wealth into the center of the storm again. The trigger was Musk's strong attack on Trump's "big and beautiful" bill, calling it "disgusting", which triggered a strong response from Trump, and the two went back and forth, blaming each other, and the relationship broke up at an "alarming rate". On June 5, the day the conflict broke out, Tesla's stock price plummeted by 14%, its market value evaporated by $153 billion overnight, and Musk's net worth also plummeted by $33 billion in this day. This "epic rupture" not only plunged Tesla into a crisis, but also hit the stability of Musk's wealth hard, highlighting his fragile situation in the business and political game.

Musk's significant loss of wealth has exposed his financial dependence on political winds and personal image. When he partnered with Trump, the market was optimistic about his business prospects; however, when the two fell out, political turmoil and public pressure quickly backfired on his companies, leading to a plummet in stock prices and evaporating market value. In the future, how Musk will rebalance amidst political whirlwinds and business competition, and whether he can lead companies like Tesla out of the predicament to restore wealth growth, will become a focal point of close attention for the business community and investors. This grand drama intertwining business and politics continues to unfold.