Tesla CEO says he will spend ‘far more’ of his time running carmaker after putting cost-cutting team in place.

Tesla revenue and earnings plunged in the first quarter and it warned that the escalating trade war muddied the company’s outlook for the rest of this year. This comes as analysts blame CEO Elon Musk’s high profile ties to President Donald Trump’s administration for hurting the brand’s reputation.

Elon Musk will significantly scale back his Trump administration work in May to focus on Tesla, the billionaire announced Tuesday as the electric vehicle maker reported a 71 per cent drop in first-quarter profits.