Tesla Inc.’s stock price climbed back above US$1,000 after a report said Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk sees a possibility the electric-car maker will avoid a second-quarter loss.

“Breaking even is looking super tight,” Musk wrote in an email to employees obtained by the blog Electrek. “Really makes a difference for every car you build and deliver. Please go all out to ensure victory!”

Tesla shares surged 5.2 per cent on Monday to close at US$1,009.35. The stock has soared 141 per cent this year, putting its market capitalization on course to rival Toyota Motor Corp., the most valuable automaker in the world by that measure.

Musk, 49, has routinely sent emails to rally the troops at the end of a quarter or year, and Tesla hasn’t always lived up to the expectations set by his internal memos. The company reported a record 97,000 deliveries for the three months that ended in September, though that fell short of the 100,000 mark he floated in an email to staff days earlier.