Elon Musk has bought US$25 million ($35.6m) worth of stock in Tesla, as the electric car company announced it was slashing 9 per cent of jobs due to "duplication of roles".
The move, seen by many as a strategic manoeuvre by Musk to show his optimism over Tesla's future, prompted shares to push higher in after-hours trading.
The chief executive bought around 72,000 shares, taking his holding in the business to 34 million, or around a 20 per cent stake, according to the Daily Telegraph.
News of the share purchases, which took place on Tuesday and Wednesday, comes just one day after Tesla said it would be cutting around 3,000 roles, in what Musk said had been a "difficult decision".
"Given that Tesla has never made an annual profit in the almost 15 years since we have existed, profit is obviously not what motivates us," he wrote in an email to employees and later posted on Twitter.
