Tesla Stock Price and Forecast: TSLA stock dips on lower CPI but raises price of Model Y again

• January CPI came in 6.4% YoY, 6.2% expected.
• TSLA stock dropped 1.2% on CPI data.
• TSLA facing unionization push at Buffalo factory.
• NASDAQ moved slightly negative after CPI print.

Tesla (TSLA) stock dipped before the market open on Tuesday as the January Consumer Price Index, a reading of inflation, came in slightly higher than expected. The YoY headline reading came in at 6.4%, whereas economists had expected 6.2%. Still this was a decline from the 6.5% YoY reading for December. Nonetheless, it may not affect the Federal Reserve all that much since the more important MoM core reading showed a 0.4% increase as expected.

TSLA stock dropped 1.2% on the CPI news but has since been moving higher on the mixed results. The Nasdaq futures also saw a decline but then appear to have righted the ship.

Tesla stock news: Buffalo union begins campaign, Model Y price revised up

Tesla is once again dealing with a union situation at its Buffalo plant. Workers United, an affiliate union of the more powerful Service Employees International Union (SEIU), is campaigning for higher job security at the Buffalo plant where Tesla produces its solar shingle products. 

“Unionizing will further accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy because it will give us a voice in our workplace and in the goals we set for ourselves to accomplish," the union leaders wrote to Tesla CEO Elon Musk in an email.

The factory has said in the past that it employs about 1,500 workers, and recent years have seen complaints from the same factory over alleged workplace racism incidents.

On the automotive front, Tesla is altering its pricing on various models for the fourth time this year, this time in the US. Tesla's Model Y Performance crossover saw its price increase by $1,000 on Tuesday morning to $58,990. Its rear-wheel drive Model 3, on the other hand, saw its price dive by $500 to $42,990. Tesla began the year by cutting the prices on most of the models across its lineup but has since reported a general a major spike in demand worldwide.

Tesla stock forecast

Tesla stock broke below the $199 resistance level on Friday. On Monday TSLA at least momentarily dropped below the 9-day moving average as well, though later in the session it moved back to parity. Last Thursday also witnessed on the daily chart what might be viewed as a bearish Evening Star pattern. It would seem from this evidence that Tesla stock is likely to consolidate further and find support.

Where is that support to be found though? First, there is a former resistance zone between $180 and $182.50 that worked in both November and December. Then there is the ascending lower support trendline that could provide support between $175 and $180. Below here is the $167.50 support thath worked on November 21 and 22 from last fall. Take your pick, but any move back above $199 will provoke the bulls to return to the fore.

TSLA 1-day chart