Tesla drops Model 3 base price; still $8000 above $35000 target

The Model 3, which was previously $44,000, was initially supposed to cost $35,000 when it was first introduced in 2016, CNN reported.

Tesla has cut the starting price of its Model 3 sedan by more than $1,000, bringing it closer to its long-fabled $35,000 price tag. Tesla has also been cutting costs as it looks to turn in profits this year.

In an effort to lower the price of the vehicle, Musk, who is also the founder of rocket company SpaceX, has slashed more than 3,000 jobs and ended a customer referral program.

Musk announced the new $1,100 cut in a late Tuesday tweet.

USA oil, gasoline inventories up in latest week
Meanwhile, U.S. sanctions against Venezuela's oil industry are expected to knock out at least 500,000 bpd of crude exports. International Brent crude oil futures fell 25 cents, or 0.4 per cent, to $62.44 per barrel.

Tesla typically only releases global quarterly sales figures, but Musk acknowledged on the call that sales had weakened in January, in part due to a "pull forward of demand" to December by many customers looking to beat a 50 percent cut in the tax credit Teslas are eligible for that occurred at the end of 2018. Despite this price difference, Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote a Twitter message on Wednesday that said the luxury vehicle will actually cost $35,000 if customers factor in $8,000 of credits and fuel savings. "It's a super hard grind".

The billionaire in the past few months has been pushing for cost-cutting initiatives, like ending a customer referral program.

USA Today business reporter Nathan Bomey on Tesla's fourth-quarter results and outlook.

Tesla ended its customer referral incentive plan on February 1 after Musk tweeted that the referral program was "adding too much cost to the cars, especially Model 3".