A surge in Tesla share prices has propelled the electric vehicle (EV) brand to become the world’s most valuable car manufacturer.

Just a week after Elon Musk’s Space X shuttle launch proved that the sky was no longer the limit for the EV pioneer, shares in Tesla passed $1,000 (£788) each yesterday (June 10) as its value surpassed that of Japanese OEM giant Toyota.

Tesla is now said to be worth around $190bn (almost £150bn).

The Telegraph newspaper reported that shares received a boost on Tuesday after Musk emailed staff to inform that Tesla’s new fully-electric HGV was now ready for "volume production".

The news also follows news that Tesla chief executive, Musk, may have travelled to the UK earlier this week to explore a possible location for a UK “Gigafactory”, near Bristol.

The Financial Times (FT) reported on the visit almost a fortnight after AM highlighted an article published in Property Week, which said that the Department for International Trade (DIT) was seeking a four million square foot site to accommodate an electric vehicle (EV) research, development and manufacturing plant for the brand.

Tesla’s share price has previously fa;len sharply amid concerns about manufacturing difficulties due to COVID-19. 

The pandemic forced the brand to close factories in Fremont, California, and Buffalo, New York, and its newly-opened factory in China was also forced to suspend operations for several weeks.

Back in March, however, research conducted by automotive industry analyst GlobalData asserted that carmakers Tesla and Toyota would prove to be the OEM brands most resilient to the impact of COVID-19 coronavirus.

Commenting at the time, Automotive Analyst at GlobalData, Calum MacRae, said: “Top-of-the-ranking Tesla is fortunate to have only just started production in China.

“If you didn't have much to lose you can't lose too much. Second-placed Toyota benefits from a pretty diverse geographical footprint.”