As President Trump puts new tariffs on goods from China and threatens a trade war with allies like Mexico and Canada, one global company is likely to suffer less than most of its competitors: Tesla.

But the electric car maker led by Elon Musk, which accounts for a third of the billionaire’s wealth, is also vulnerable if relations with China worsen. That country is the company’s second-largest market after the United States and it produces more cars there than anywhere else.

Tesla has built largely self-sufficient supply chains in the United States and China, a rarity in a world of interconnected trade. As a result, the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on Chinese goods, and the continuing threat to put them on Mexican and Canadian products, might help Tesla by hurting its competitors more.

Although there is no evidence that Mr. Musk is shaping trade policies, the tariffs are one of several measures adopted by the Trump administration that may benefit Tesla at the expense of its rivals. On Wednesday, Mr. Trump paused 25 percent tariffs on most autos and parts made in Canada and Mexico, but the reprieve expires in a month, leaving automakers in the United States that depend on foreign supply chains in a state of uncertainty.

The administration is also trying to eliminate financial support for the construction of fast-charging stations for electric vehicles, a move that could handicap companies seeking to compete with Tesla’s extensive network. And it is attempting to cut or eliminate loans and subsidies that competitors like Ford Motor and Rivian are using to finance electric vehicle and battery factories.

Mr. Musk has said next to nothing about trade or the administration’s crusade to promote fossil fuels and impede sales of electric vehicles, which could also hurt Tesla. And his support of Mr. Trump has inspired protests at Tesla dealerships and weighed on Tesla’s share price. But his position as a de facto member of Mr. Trump’s cabinet gives him influence that far exceeds any other auto executive.

“Conflict of interest is putting it very mildly here,” said John Helveston, an assistant professor at George Washington University who teaches engineering management.

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. A White House official said that its policies predated Mr. Musk’s support for Mr. Trump.

“President Trump consistently slammed Biden’s job-killing electric vehicle policies on the campaign trail since summer 2023 — more than a year before Elon Musk even endorsed President Trump — and he has consistently pressed companies to have their products be made in America since he first ran for president in 2015,” Kush Desai, a White House spokesman, said in an email.

The trade war and other Trump policies also hold risks for Tesla when the company is already in crisis, with sales plummeting in China and Europe even as the overall market for electric vehicles is surging.

Mr. Musk’s extensive investments in China leave him vulnerable as trade tensions between the Chinese government and the Trump administration rise.

“He could become a pawn in all of this,” said Lei Xing, an independent auto analyst based in Massachusetts who is focused on China.

Tesla is already struggling in Europe and China because of competition from Chinese electric carmakers and a dearth of new models. Anger over Mr. Musk’s political activities, including promotion of far-right parties, has also hurt demand in Germany, the United States and other markets. Mr. Musk’s personal wealth is tied up in Tesla stock, which has been on a steep decline.

When Tesla began mass-producing electric cars at a factory in Fremont, Calif., in 2012, it designed a supply chain that was less dependent on imports than virtually all of its competitors. Electric vehicles were a new technology then, forcing Tesla to largely develop its own sources of batteries, motors and other components.

Tesla built a battery factory in Nevada in partnership with Panasonic of Japan, and it remains one of just a few car companies to mass-produce batteries in the United States.

When, in 2014, Mr. Musk began talking about building a factory in China, he received a warm welcome from government officials. Tesla opened a factory in Shanghai six years later under unusually favorable conditions. Beijing changed ownership rules so that the company could set up without a local partner, a first for a foreign automaker in China. The Chinese government also ensured low-interest loans, access to top leaders and even changes that Tesla had sought on emissions regulations.

But Mr. Musk kept supply chains for the Chinese and U.S. factories relatively separate, unlike other auto companies that depend heavily on imported parts.

“He set himself up nicely in the event that trade goes sideways and tariffs go higher,” said Michael Dunne, a longtime China automotive consultant. “And that serves him well today.”

Today, the cars made in Shanghai are sold in Europe, Southeast Asia or in the domestic Chinese market — but not in the United States.

The cars Tesla sells in the United States are made at factories in Fremont and Austin, Texas. Tesla also produces charging equipment for its proprietary charging network — the nation’s largest — in Buffalo, N.Y. Tesla regularly tops an annual ranking by Cars.com, an online shopping site, of how much of a vehicle is American-made.

“Tesla is in a good position” to withstand tariffs, said Patrick Masterson, who oversees compilation of the data that goes into the Cars.com ranking. “Their domestic production is robust.”

Tesla is still vulnerable to tariffs on goods from China and Mexico because a quarterof the components and materials in the car, measured by value, is imported, according to data compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. But electric vehicles made by Tesla’s competitors are much more vulnerable to tariffs.

General Motors’ Chevrolet Equinox sport utility vehicle, for example, is made in Mexico. With a starting price of $34,000, the battery-powered Equinox is a threat to the Tesla Model Y, which starts at $45,000 before government incentives. The Trump administration’s 25 percent tariff will erase most of that advantage, assuming it stands.

The risk to Tesla in China is harder to gauge. So far, Chinese leaders appear to see Mr. Musk’s role in the Trump administration as a plus, viewing him as a potential point of contact. In January, when Han Zheng, China’s vice president flew to Washington to attend Mr. Trump’s inauguration, he met with Mr. Musk.

“U.S.-China policy often has operated through specific personal relationships,” said Ilaria Mazzocco, a senior fellow in Chinese business and economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. “There is hope in China that he could play a constructive role.”

But Mr. Musk has also lost some bargaining power in China.

When Chinese leaders greenlighted the Shanghai factory, Tesla was seen as a technology leader that would spur development of the E.V. industry. With sales plummeting in Europe and weakening in China, however, Tesla production in Shanghai fell 50 percent in February from a year earlier. Chinese automakers like BYD and Xiaomi are introducing new models that rival Tesla in features like autonomous driving.

Tesla’s prestige and leverage in China may be diminished as a result.

“Tesla can no longer control China,” said Jia Xinguang, an independent automotive analyst in Australia. “But China, by contrast, can control Tesla.”

Still, China would likely think twice before targeting Tesla and Mr. Musk because doing so could make it more difficult to attract foreign investment, said Wang Yanhang, a fellow at the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University in Beijing who tracks trade issues. “China will not shoot itself in the foot,” he said. “It is the last option.”

China has so far steered clear of autos when retaliating against the Trump administration’s tariffs on Chinese goods, instead raising duties on U.S. agricultural products like chicken and wheat.

Tesla has quietly fought at least one potential tariff on Chinese materials that would have a direct impact on its competitiveness.

China is the main source of high-purity graphite, an essential material for batteries. In December, a group of companies that are trying to produce battery-grade graphite in the United States accused China of dumping and asked the U.S. International Trade Commission to impose punitive duties that could be more than 800 percent.

At a hearing on the issue in January, Tesla hired a prominent Washington law firm to argue its case, and four Tesla executives spoke, according to public documents. Tesla is “pushing back because they don’t see an alternative to the Chinese graphite,” said Iola Hughes, head of research at Rho Motion, which tracks the battery industry.

Last month, the trade agency said there was a “reasonable indication” that Chinese exports of graphite were harming U.S. producers. The agency has not issued a final decision. Mr. Trump’s rhetoric on trade has not included any mention of graphite.

Joy Dong contributed reporting.

The stock market suffered its worst week in many months, after a series of dizzying policy shifts on tariffs from the White House amid simmering concerns about the health of the economy.

The S&P 500 seesawed throughout the day on Friday, marking a volatile end to a turbulent week, as investors parsed the latest employment data and comments from the Federal Reserve chair, Jerome H. Powell, about the direction of interest rates.

Even though the index ended the day with a gain, the S&P 500 notched its third consecutive week of losses with a drop of 3.1 percent, its sharpest weekly decline since early September.

There has been a sharp mood shift since the index hit a record high less than a month ago, as investors have become worried about the trajectory for economic growth, made worse by tariffs on imports from the country’s largest trading partners. Surveys have also showed mounting concern among consumers.

On Friday, investors appeared to take solace from Mr. Powell’s comments after he struck a positive tone, saying “despite elevated levels of uncertainty, the U.S. economy continues to be in a good place.” He reiterated the Fed’s commitment to keep rates steady as it works to bring down inflation. Another positive sign on Friday came from the labor market. With 151,000 jobs added in February, the data showed a pace of hiring moderate enough to temper fears about resurgent inflation, yet robust enough to avoid exacerbating worries about a slowing economy.

Lara Castleton, U.S. head of portfolio construction and strategy at Janus Henderson Investors, said the jobs data would probably ease “overly sour expectations” about the economy. “After confidence on the economy has taken a turn,” she said, “market participants were looking to either confirm or reverse that sentiment.”

It had already been a bruising week for investors after 25 percent tariffs came into force on Mexico and Canada on Tuesday, and an additional 10 percent tariff on China. Concessions were made on Thursday, suspending the tariffs on many goods from Canada and Mexico, but it failed to stoke a rally.

There were other signs of strain. The U.S. dollar suffered its worst week in more than two years, sliding more than 3 percent against a basket of currencies of the United States’ major trading partners. Both the Mexican peso and Canadian dollar strengthened against the U.S. dollar, after two weeks of losses.

And other areas of the markets that had initially benefited after Mr. Trump’s election have also come under pressure. Tesla, the electric car company run by Elon Musk, has halved its value since December. Bitcoin is down roughly 20 percent over the same period.

“I think the markets are essentially taking President Trump a bit more seriously on tariffs,” said Jim Caron, chief investment officer of the portfolio solutions group at the Morgan Stanley Investment Institute. He said that despite the recent sell-off, major stock indexes remained close to record highs and the economy remained in good shape.

Much of the sell-off has been driven by big technology companies, which, because of their size, have a big effect on broad indexes. Since the S&P 500 peaked on Feb. 19, the index has fallen just over 6 percent. A separate measure that gives all of the stocks an equal weight in the index had fallen 4.4 percent over the same period.

What isn’t clear is whether investors are selling because they see the tide turning for tech companies or because of broader concerns. Tech giants, buoyed by opportunities in artificial intelligence, had enjoyed a sharp rise until this year when it appeared more competition may be entering the A.I. market.

The threat of competition created some selling pressure, but investors may also be pulling back because they are worried about the broader trajectory of the market.

All 11 sectors of the S&P 500 except health care stocks ended the week in the red, with financials and consumer discretionary stocks joining tech among the worst performing.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies more exposed to the ebb and flow of the economy has fallen even further than the S&P 500. The index fell 3.8 percent this week and is now almost 15 percent below its recent peak reached in November.

“In the last couple of weeks, and maybe for the next couple of weeks, we have gone through a very challenging news cycle,” Mr. Caron said. “We need to get through that and assess how much damage there is to markets.”