Months after Elon Musk left the Trump administration to the relief of Tesla investors worried about boycotts, the world’s richest man has announced some good news: Sales of Tesla cars are back.

Well, maybe.

The electric vehicle maker run by Musk reported Thursday that car sales jumped 7% in the three months through September after plunging for most of the year as people turned off by his embrace of President Donald Trump and far-right politicians in Europe balked at buying his cars.

But the jump comes with a caveat: Tesla benefited from consumers taking advantage of a $7,500 tax credit before it expired on Sept. 30, a surge in buying that helped all EV makers.

In fact, many Tesla rivals saw sales rise more. Rivian Automotive reported a 32% increase.

Tesla stock rose sharply on the s

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