Musk praises Xi as great leader in interview with Chinese state television
TSLA•Musk praises Xi and China’s progress
BEIJING, Sept. 23 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk praised Chinese President Xi Jinping as a "great leader" in comments during an interview with Chinese state television network CCTV on Wednesday.
"Under his tenure, China has prospered immensely," Musk said, citing progress seen from new buildings and infrastructure constructed in the country.
"It's also obvious to see that, just walking around the streets, the increased prosperity of the average Chinese citizen," he added.
Tesla Shanghai factory and China sales
Musk also commented on Tesla's largest manufacturing hub, which is located in Shanghai, calling the team "incredibly talented, hardworking and trustworthy".
"Tesla's Shanghai factory is a gem and it's beautiful, actually, if anyone's ever been there," he said.
Musk had previously dismissed speculation that Tesla's China operations could be separated ahead of a potential merger with SpaceX.
Sales of Model 3 and Model Y vehicles produced at Tesla's Shanghai plant, also its largest export hub globally, rose 3.6% year-on-year in August, slowing sharply from the previous month, as divergent trends persisted across the US automaker's major markets.
