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☆ China's BYD launches lower-priced versions of Seal EV; aims to extend lead
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SHANGHAI, May 10 (Reuters) - BYD Co Ltd (002594.SZ), launched on Wednesday five lower-priced versions of its Seal sedan, as the Chinese electric vehicle (EV) giant seeks to extend its lead in the world's largest market for new-energy cars. That is also 18% cheaper than the rear-wheel drive version of Tesla Inc's (TSLA.O) Model 3 in China with a driving range of 556 kilometres, against which the Seal model seeks to compete. China's EV market is in the throes of a price war started by Tesla earlier this year, with several EV makers including BYD following the U.S. automaker's example by cutting prices for best-selling models this year to defend market share. The EV price war is also drawing sales away from internal combustion engine vehicles as the price gap between the technologies narrows. BYD has so far led the new energy vehicle (NEV) market with its various offerings of battery-only and plug-in hybrid models priced under 300,000 yuan.

☆ Why Porsche is investing $100 million on eFuels to keep its cars on the road
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Robert Ferris | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Porsche has invested more than $100 million in the development of eFuels. "With this approach we have another lever, another opportunity to reduce the CO2 footprint for the combustion engine-driven cars," said Karl Dums, senior manager of eFuels at Porsche. "Electric cars are more expensive to produce, so they are margin dilutive," said Daniel Schwarz, managing director at Stifel. "And Porsche managed to increase the share of electric cars and increase the profitability in parallel." But critics of Porsche's $100 million push into eFuels argue the resultant fuel will be too expensive and inefficient to ever compete with electrification.

☆ Ford sees $1.5 billion to $2 billion restructuring charges in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Ford Motor Co FollowMay 3 (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N) expects to take up restructuring charges between $1.5 billion and $2 billion in 2023, it said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday, as part of the U.S. automaker's move to exit unprofitable locations and cut headcount. Earlier this year, Ford said it plans to cut one in nine jobs in Europe, as part of a drive to lower costs in the region and concentrate engineering know-how in the United States. It has also been curbing operations in countries such as Brazil and India, as it pours billions into developing electric vehicles. The disclosure comes a day after the company posted robust quarterly results but issued a measured full-year outlook, weighed down by continued losses in its electric-vehicle unit. Reporting by Priyamvada C in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita BhattacharjeeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ US Senator Rubio seeks probe of Ford's Chinese partnership on nickel plant
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Senator Marcio Rubio on Wednesday asked the Biden administration to investigate Ford Motor Co's (F.N) plan to partner with PT Vale Indonesia (INCO.JK) and China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt in a $4.5 billion nickel processing plant in Indonesia. Indonesia, which has the world's biggest nickel reserves, has been trying to develop downstream industries for the metal, ultimately aiming to produce batteries and electric vehicles. Vale and Huayou began construction of the plant in November and commercial operation is expected to start in 2026. He had already asked the Biden administration to review the deal to use technology from CATL. Rubio wants to block tax credits for electric vehicle batteries produced using Chinese technology, in a bid to prevent Chinese companies from benefiting.

☆ Automakers are pausing factory lines to help keep inventory low and prices high
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Throughout the height of COVID, carmakers got used to getting high prices. But some carmakers might limit their inventory to keep supply down and prices up. Since recovering from COVID-related plant shutdowns and an extended shortage of chips required for today's tech-laden cars, companies like Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis have finally seen more cars head to dealer lots. But they got used to selling vehicles for high prices with minimal inventory on their lots. But shoppers shouldn't necessarily see some automaker's low inventory as a signal of high demand for a vehicle that they'd have to pay big dollars to compete on.

☆ Ford posts stellar first quarter, boosted by fleet and legacy truck divisions
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

DETROIT — Ford Motor on Tuesday reported first-quarter results that significantly topped Wall Street's estimates, as the automaker's fleet and legacy operations outweighed growing losses in electric vehicles. Ford finance chief John Lawler said the quarter was a "peek at what's possible to generate value and growth." The company reiterated it expects full-year adjusted earnings between $9 billion and $11 billion and roughly $6 billion in adjusted free cash flow. Ford said it plans to have capital expenditures of between $8 billion and $9 billion in 2023. Ford also reconfirmed it expects to lose about $3 billion from its electric vehicle operations, known as Model e, in 2023.

☆ Morgan Stanley upgrades this U.S. auto giant, says stock is oversold
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Morgan Stanley thinks investors may be overlooking shares of U.S. automaker General Motors . Morgan Stanley's bull case is even higher, with a new $60 per share target representing nearly 82% upside. "GM may be overearning, but the stock is oversold," Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas said. General Motors shares are down nearly 2% year to date. GM YTD mountain Morgan Stanley thinks a bull case for General Motors could see the U.S. automaker's stock climb as high as $60 per share.

☆ Earnings playbook: The second half of the season kicks off with Apple, Ford and a pharma giant
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Fred Imbert | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

What history shows: Data from Bespoke Investment Group shows Pfizer beats earnings expectations 87% of the time. Ford Motor is set to report earnings after the close, followed by a call at 5 p.m. What history shows: Ford earnings outperform earnings expectations 69% of the time, per Bespoke. AMD is set to report earnings after the close, with management scheduled to hold a conference call at 5 p.m. Friday Warner Bros Discovery is set to report earnings before the open, followed by a conference call at 8 a.m.

☆ Tesla Models S, X unavailable in some Asia-Pacific countries, website shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 30 (Reuters) - Tesla's Model S and Model X were not available for order in some Asia-Pacific countries, including Australia, Thailand, Singapore and New Zealand, the automaker's website showed on Sunday. Other Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) models, such as Model 3 and Model Y were available in these countries, according to the website. It was not immediately clear why these models were not available. Elon Musk's electric vehicle maker posted record deliveries in the January-March quarter, but deliveries of higher-priced Model X and Model S vehicles slumped by 38%. Tesla has been aggressively cutting prices for some of its models this year across markets to juice demand as competition among electric-vehicle makers heats up around the world.

☆ Japan's Honda Motor in strategic collaboration deal with TSMC
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] The logo of Honda is seen during the 88th International Motor Show at Palexpo in Geneva, Switzerland, March 6, 2018. REUTERS/Pierre Albouy/File PhotoTOKYO, April 26 (Reuters) - Japan's Honda Motor Co (7267.T) on Wednesday unveiled it struck a strategic collaboration agreement with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) (2330.TW) as part of steps the company was taking to secure a stable supply of semiconductors. Honda will build direct relationships with chip producers for the long-term stable supply of chips, chief executive Toshihiro Mibe said at a news conference where he laid out the automaker's business strategy. "Honda will work closely together with Tier 1 suppliers and semiconductor makers and move forward with drastic steps," Mibe said, adding it had reached a basic agreement on strategic collaboration with TSMC. Honda also said it planned to introduce four new electric vehicle (EV) models in Japan by 2026.

☆ General Motors raises 2023 guidance as first-quarter earnings beat expectations
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The new range is between $8.4 billion and $9.9 billion, down from $8.7 billion to $10.1 billion. DETROIT — General Motors on Tuesday raised key guidance for 2023 after reporting first-quarter results that topped Wall Street's top- and bottom-line forecasts. Its net income during the first quarter, however, was down by roughly 18% to $2.3 billion compared to a year earlier. CFO Paul Jacobson said the company felt confident in raising its adjusted earnings guidance after first-quarter results came in above the company's internal expectations, including continued demand for high-end models. GM's first-quarter results included adjusted earnings of $3.8 billion, down 6% from a year earlier.

☆ GM to end production of electric Chevy Bolt, its first mass-market EV, later this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Steve Fecht for ChevroletDETROIT – General Motors plans to stop production of its electric Chevrolet Bolt models by the end of this year, CEO Mary Barra told investors Tuesday when discussing the company's first-quarter earnings. The Chevy Bolt EV and EUV, a larger version of the car, make up the vast majority of the company's electric vehicle sales to date. General Motors CEO Mary Barra unveiled the Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle during the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. But Bolt sales never caught on as well as many executives hoped, as EV sales overall remained minuscule outside of Tesla . The Vermont State Police released this photo of the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV that caught fire on July 1, 2021 in the driveway of state Rep. Timothy Briglin, a Democrat.

☆ Earnings playbook: Your guide to a busy week of earnings, featuring Meta and Amazon
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Fred Imbert | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

What history shows: GM has reported a better-than-expected bottom line in 29 of the last 30 quarters, per FactSet. McDonald's is set to report earnings in the premarket, with management slated to hold a call at 8:30 a.m. What history shows: History shows Google's parent company beats earnings expectations 68% of the time, with the stock averaging a gain of 1.6% on earnings day, per Bespoke. Meta Platforms is set to report earnings after market close, followed by a conference call at 5 p.m. What history shows: Bespoke data shows Intel beats earnings expectations 77% of the time.

☆ Tesla's California market share tumbles despite aggressive price cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Hyunjoo Jin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SAN FRANCISCO, April 21 (Reuters) - Tesla's market share in its key California market tumbled in the first quarter of the year despite aggressive price cuts as rivals stepped up, data showed on Friday. Tesla's sales in California accounted for 16% of the automaker's global deliveries last year, according to Reuters calculation. Tesla CEO Elon Musk's pursuit of Twitter and embrace of Republicans has sparked concerns about Tesla's brand, especially in liberal states like California. Globally, Tesla posted record quarterly vehicle deliveries for the quarter, but quarter-on-quarter sales growth was modest despite price cuts as rising competition, especially in China, and a bleak economic outlook weighed. The price cuts hit Tesla's first-quarter margins, pushing its shares down nearly 10% on Thursday.

☆ Meta just surged past Tesla in market value for the first time in 16 months
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Meta overtook Tesla in market value for the first time in 16 months on Thursday. Meta shares are up 77% this year, while Tesla slid Thursday on concerns about its profit margins. The social-media giant had a market capitalization of $547 billion at the closing bell, according to Yahoo Finance, which comfortably exceeded the automaker's $517 billion market cap. The last time Meta was worth more than Tesla was December 20, 2021. Meta and Tesla are now respectively the seventh- and eighth-largest companies in the world by market capitalization, per CompaniesMarketCap data.

After the verdict on Friday, juror Mitchell Vasseur, 63, told Reuters that he and his fellow jurors felt badly for Hsu, but ultimately determined that Autopilot was not at fault. Jury foreperson Olivia Apsher, 31, said the Autopilot system reminds drivers when they are not adequately taking control. "There are audible warnings and visual warnings both for the driver, indicating that it is your responsibility." The trial unfolded in Los Angeles Superior Court over three weeks and featured testimony from three Tesla engineers. Reporting by Abhirup Roy in Los Angeles, and Dan Levine and Hyun Joo Jin in San Francisco Editing by Peter Henderson and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ford F-150 Lightning fire footage highlights a growing EV risk
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

EV fires have become a growing concern as automakers push to increase sales of electric vehicles and meet tightening emissions standards. An electric Ford F-150 Lightning caught fire on Feb. 4, 2023 due to a battery issue traced back to one of the automaker's suppliers. A bill that requires them to complete a training program about the risk of electric vehicle fires passed unanimously this year. There's also the risk of reignition: Lithium-ion battery fires can re-engage weeks later with little to no warning. An electric Ford F-150 Lightning caught fire on Feb. 4, 2023 due to a battery issue traced back to one of the automaker's suppliers.

☆ Profit for Tesla short sellers rises in April -S3 Partners
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Caroline Valetkevitch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Tesla Inc FollowApple Inc FollowNEW YORK, April 19 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) short sellers have $2.16 billion in mark-to-market profits for April so far, but shorts remain down $5.52 billion for the year so far in mark-to-market losses, S3 Partners wrote in a research note on Wednesday ahead of the automaker's quarterly results due after the closing bell. The electric car company's shares were down about 1% on Wednesday ahead of its quarterly results. Investors are focused on margins after Tesla cut U.S. prices on its electric cars for the sixth time this year. "Recent TSLA short covering may be an indication that some short sellers think that TSLA's profit margins will stay in the 20% range, and trimmed their exposure to lock in some of April's mark-to-market profits in the anticipation of a stock price rally," S3 Partners analysts wrote in the note. 2 spot in the U.S. most-shorted list, behind Apple Inc (AAPL.O), with Tesla's short interest at $15.42 billion, and 83.65 million shares shorted.

☆ Volkswagen reveals the ID.7, new flagship EV with more than 300 miles of range
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( John Rosevear | In Jrosevear | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Volkswagen's new ID.7 electric sedan will go on sale in the U.S. next year. Volkswagen on Monday unveiled a new large electric sedan that it says will have well over 300 miles of range in its top-level trim when it arrives in the U.S. market next year. (The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's EV range ratings are often 10% to 20% lower than WLTP ratings.) Base models will come with a 77 kWh battery that will provide an estimated 382 miles of range on the WLTP cycle, the company said. Both batteries will accept DC fast charging: The standard 77 kWh battery can recharge at up to 170 kilowatts; the optional 86 kWh battery at up to 200 kWs.

☆ Wall St dips to lower close as rate hike bets firm, banks jump
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Stephen Culp | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"Today we're taking bit of a breather," said Sal Bruno, chief investment officer at IndexIQ in New York. Citigroup Inc (C.N), JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) beat earnings expectations, benefiting from rising interest rates and easing fears of stress in the banking system. The S&P 500 banking sector (.SPXBK) jumped 3.5% and JPMorgan Chase surged 7.6%, its biggest one-day percentage gain since Nov. 9, 2020. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, seven ended the session lower, with real estate (.SPLRCR) falling most. The S&P 500 posted 11 new 52-week highs and two new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 47 new highs and 205 new lows.

☆ Wall St slides as rate hike expectations firm, banks surge
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Stephen Culp | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"As expected, the bigger banks were probably not harmed that much by the regional banking turmoil, and possibly even beneficiaries of it," Mayfield added. "We saw mostly strong and healthy balance sheets, and it's pretty clear (the regional banking) crisis isn't systemic." The S&P 500 banking sector (.SPXBK) jumped 3.4% and JPMorgan Chase surged 7.3%, setting itself up for its biggest one-day percentage gain since Nov. 9, 2020. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, financials (.SPSY) were the sole gainers. The S&P 500 posted nine new 52-week highs and two new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 37 new highs and 182 new lows.

☆ Tesla to skip Shanghai Autoshow, organiser's plan shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SHANGHAI, April 14 (Reuters) - Tesla will not occupy a booth at China's largest annual autoshow to be held next week in Shanghai, according to plans published by the event's organisers. The financial hub is set to host Auto Shanghai between April 18-27. It is Asia's largest auto show where brands from BYD (002594.SZ) to Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) are expected to show off their latest models and technologies. Tesla, which has a large electric vehicle factory in Shanghai, has attended the show in past years. Tesla and Auto Shanghai did not immediately respond to a request for comment when asked about the U.S. automaker's participation at the Shanghai auto show on Friday.

Imbalance had long riled Nissan executives who complained Renault did not pay its fair share of costs for innovation and development. In a joint statement to Reuters, Nissan and Renault said they were working toward final partnership terms that would make them more competitive. Nissan will invest and provide technology for the venture but will limit its operational involvement, one of the people told Reuters. In rebalancing talks, Nissan has pushed for protection of its technology to limit any downside from continued partnership, people involved have said. Among technology Nissan wants to protect is its work on solid-state lithium-ion battery making and its e-Power electric hybrid powertrain, the people said.

Ford officials declined to say whether the plant will assemble five EV models, as agreed with Unifor during the 2020 contract talks. The Oakville plant currently builds combustion Ford Edge and Lincoln Nautilus SUVs. Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley has said Ford will have the ability to assemble 2 million EVs globally by 2026. Ford officials said Oakville will build the automaker's next-generation EVs, which Ford executives have said will have to be more efficient, easier to assemble and more competitive with the Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) vehicles that currently lead in North American market EV sales. Battery cells for the Oakville-built EVs will come from a factory Ford and battery partner SK On plan are building in Kentucky, Nowicki said.

REUTERS/Florence LoWASHINGTON, April 10 (Reuters) - The leader of a U.S. congressional committee on China said on Monday he was concerned about electric carmaker Tesla Inc's (TSLA.O) dependency on China, a day after the company revealed plans to open a Megapack battery factory in Shanghai. Mike Gallagher, the Republican chair of the House of Representatives' select committee on China's Communist Party, said he would like to know how Tesla's CEO Elon Musk balances U.S. government support for Tesla and its operations in China. "I'm concerned about this," Gallagher told Reuters when asked about the battery factory. "Tesla seems entirely dependent, A, on the largesse of the federal government via tax breaks, and B, upon access to the Chinese market," Gallagher said. Tesla generated $18.15 billion in revenue from China last year, accounting for over one fifth of its total revenue.

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