Tesla's shares have fallen 16% since CEO Elon Musk began bashing President Donald Trump's massive spending bill last week, and the stock remains about 33% lower since Inauguration Day.

The slide since May 27 follows Musk's departure from the Trump administration the next day. It comes as the two men's relationship began publicly unraveling Thursday.

Musk, the world's richest person and until recently Trump's cost-cutter-in-chief, said he was leaving as the head of his Department of Government Efficiency project to refocus on his businesses. Those companies — Tesla, the satellite company SpaceX, the social media platform X and the brain tech startup Neuralink — have faced growing criticism as Musk oversaw deep cuts to the federal workforce. Tesla sales around the world have fallen sharply this year.

Trump and Musk traded escalating insults Thursday afternoon, with the president threatening on his Truth Social platform to "terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts."