Even the richest are worried about the economy now

New York
CNN Business
—

Even the super-rich are now nervous about the economy.

Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, two of the richest people on the entire planet (who usually don’t agree on much), both signal some tension about a looming recession.

Bezos earlier this week said it was time to « batten down the hatches ». in a tweet which included a video of the CEO of Goldman Sachs saying there was a good chance of a recession on the horizon.

Musk, for his part, was a bit more optimistic as he sought (unsuccessfully, ultimately) to allay Wall Street concerns about Tesla’s growth prospects. In a call with analysts Wednesday night, Musk struck a confident tone, saying the company has « excellent » demand for the next quarter and factories are running at full capacity.

But he admitted demand was « a bit harder » to come by and noted that Europe and China were in « sort of a recession ». Musk also warned that Tesla would miss its sales growth target.

Shares fell 7% in early trading Thursday, even as Tesla reported almost record earnings in the third quarter. Analysts and investors are increasingly concerned about Tesla’s ability to sustain growth in the face of logistical issues and rising inflation.

Musk and Bezos’ comments add to a chorus of powerful figures worried the economy is getting worse. Earlier this month, Jamie Dimon, the billionaire head of JPMorgan Chase, spooked the entire stock market by saying a recession could hit the United States within six to nine months.

Even non-billionaire but still wealthy Gwyneth Paltrow is losing sleep over it.

« The economy sucks, » she told The Hollywood Reporter this week. « I’m just worried about next year and how bad the recession is going to be. »

Other celebrities weigh in too. Last month, rapper Cardi B railed against inflation and interest rates. “How do people survive? I want to know. »

That’s a reasonable concern: researchers recently put the probability of a global recession at just over 98%.