Source : PTI | New Delhi: Moody’s on Friday affirmed India’s sovereign rating at ‘Baa3’ with a stable outlook and said high growth will support a gradual increase in income levels, which will further contribute to economic strength. Moody’s said it expects India’s economic growth to outpace all other G20 economies through at least the next two years, driven by domestic demand.

Moody’s Investors Service has today affirmed the Government of India’s long-term local and foreign-currency issuer ratings and the local-currency senior unsecured rating atBaa3. Moody’s has also affirmed India’s other short-term local-currency rating at P-3. The outlook remains stable,” it said in a statement. Continue reading “Moody’s affirms India’s sovereign rating; says GDP growth to support increase in income level”

Summary

• Chinese EV makers growing market share in Europe, target more
• Chinese brands unlikely to be able to sell as cheaply as at home
• Import costs and low brand recognition pose challenges

BERLIN, Aug 18 (Reuters) – China’s electric vehicle (EV) makers, which have raced past foreign rivals to top sales rankings at home, are arriving in Europe – and facing a new set of challenges.

Stereotypes of Chinese manufacturing, import costs, and a less developed EV market are just some of the issues Chinese brands such as BYD (002594.SZ), Nio (9866.HK) and SAIC’s MG (600104.SS) will have to overcome to thrive in Europe. Continue reading “China’s EV makers face cost and consumer challenges to conquer Europe”

DETROIT, Aug 17 (Reuters) – United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain told Reuters the Detroit Three automakers are “still not serious” in their responses so far to the union’s economic proposals, and said Sept. 14 is a firm deadline for all three companies to conclude new contracts.

“Things have been moving slow,” Fain said in an interview. He did not rule out strikes at General Motors (GM.N), Ford (F.N) and Stellantis (STLAM.MI) North America if the deadline is missed. Continue reading “UAW leader says Detroit Three automakers ‘still not serious’ in contract talks”

Aug 17 (Reuters) – Vietnamese electric-vehicle maker VinFast, which made a splash this week when its shares debuted on the Nasdaq, has stirred a mix of caution and interest among dealers with a recent change in how it will distribute its cars in the U.S. market.

The carmaker, which has shipped nearly 3,000 vehicles to North America since late last year, said on Tuesday it was changing its distribution model, which has been based on Tesla’s (TSLA.O) direct-to-consumer approach. Continue reading “Focus: VinFast’s new sales approach has US car dealers cautious but interested”

OTTAWA, Aug 17 (Reuters) – A consortium of Ford Motor Co (F.N) and South Korean companies on Thursday said they would build a C$1.2 billion ($887 million)plant to produce electric vehicle (EVs) battery materials in Becancour, Quebec, a town seeking to become an EV-supply-chain hub, Canada’s industry ministry said.

The consortium includes South Korean partners EcoProBM (247540.KQ) and SK On Co Ltd, according a statement from the ministry. The factory will eventually produce 45,000 tonnes of cathode active materials (CAM) per year for Ford EVs. Continue reading “Ford, partners pick Canada for $900 mln battery materials plant”

Source : PTI | The reduction in FAME subsidy is slowing down demand for electric two-wheelers and the manufacturers will now have to focus on achieving price reduction through R&D and innovation, a report said on Thursday. The medium-term sales trajectory for two-wheelers, which include e-two wheelers as well, is anticipated to be modest, characterized by uncertainties and driven by a host of factors, it said.

In its report, CARE Ratings said the core segments of two wheelers, specifically the 75 cc – 110 cc range in motorcycles and the 75 cc – 125 cc range in scooters, have shown a sharp sales volume decline from FY19 to FY22, with a slight recovery seen in FY23. Continue reading “Demand for electric two wheelers slowing down due to reduced govt subsidy: Report”

Source : PTI | The PM-eBus Sewa will act as a catalyst for promotion of electric vehicles across urban centres to drive the penetration of electric mobility, Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) said on Thursday.

“Buses being a pivotal source of urban pollution, the decision will help substantially reduce pollution levels and consequential carbon emissions,” SMEV Director General Sohinder Gill said in a statement. Continue reading “PM-eBus Sewa to act as catalyst for EV promotion across urban centres: SMEV”

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INDIA

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MG Motor India reports 25% growth in retail sales in July HTAuto Continue reading “WAF Auto News | The Auto World This Week (18th August 2023)”

Aug 17 (Reuters) – Electric-vehicle batteries and other car parts are the latest products under scrutiny as part of Washington’s effort to stamp out U.S. links to forced labor in Chinese supply chains, according to a document seen by Reuters, agency statistics and sources.

Until now, enforcement of a year-old U.S. law that bans the import of goods made in Xinjiang, China, has focused mainly on solar panels, tomatoes and cotton apparel. But now, components that may include lithium-ion batteries, tires and major automobile raw materials aluminum and steel are increasingly subject to detentions at the border. Continue reading “EV battery imports face scrutiny under US law on Chinese forced labor”

Aug 17 (Reuters) – Automaker Stellantis said it would invest more than $100 million in California’s Controlled Thermal Resources, its latest bet on the direct lithium extraction (DLE) sector amid the global hunt for new sources of the electric vehicle battery metal.

The investment by the Chrysler and Jeep parent announced on Thursday comes as the green energy transition and U.S. Inflation Reduction Act have fueled concerns that supplies of lithium and other materials may fall short of strong demand forecasts. Continue reading “Stellantis invests more than $100 million in California lithium project”

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug (Reuters) – Texas on Wednesday approved its plan to require companies to include Tesla’s (TSLA.O) technology in electric vehicle (EV) charging stations to be eligible for federal funds, despite calls for more time to re-engineer and test the connectors.

The decision by Texas – the biggest recipient of a $5 billion program meant to electrify U.S. highways – is being closely watched by other states and is a step forward for Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s plans to make its technology the U.S. charging standard. Continue reading “Texas approves plan to mandate Tesla tech for EV chargers despite opposition”

WASHINGTON, Aug (Reuters) – U.S President Joe Biden on Wednesday used the first anniversary of his signature Inflation Reduction Act to pitch the landmark clean-energy law as an economic powerhouse to a public that remains largely unaware of its contents.

The wide-ranging law provides billions of dollars in tax credits to help consumers buy electric vehicles and companies produce renewable energy, as Biden aims to decarbonize the mighty U.S. power sector. It also helps seniors pay for prescription drugs, expands some elements of Obamacare and raises taxes on wealthy Americans and corporations. Continue reading “Biden touts Inflation Reduction Act on first anniversary”

Source : PTI | New Delhi: Mahindra & Mahindra expects electric vehicle production at its upcoming plant in Chakan in Maharashtra to hit peak production mark of 2 lakh units per annum between 2027 and 2029, according to company President -Automotive Sector Veejay Nakra. The company estimates that EVs would account for 30% of the overall volumes by 2030.

In January this year, the auto major received an approval from the Maharashtra government to set up a INR 10,000-crore electric vehicle plant in Chakan near Pune. Continue reading “M&M expects to produce 2 lakh EVs from upcoming Chakan plant by 2029: Veejay Nakra”

Source : PTI | Auto components maker Happy Forgings Ltd has filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator Sebi to raise INR 1,200-1,300 crore through an initial public offering (IPO). The IPO comprises a fresh issue of equity shares worth INR 500 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 80.55 lakh shares by a promoter and a selling shareholder, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) filed on Monday.

As part of the OFS, 53.7 lakh equity shares will be offloaded by Paritosh Kumar Garg (HUF) and up to 26.85 lakh equity shares by India Business Excellence Fund – III. Continue reading “Auto components maker Happy Forgings files IPO papers with Sebi”

BENGALURU, Aug 16 (Reuters) – Hyundai Motor Co’s (005380.KS) Indian unit will buy automaker General Motors’ (GM.N) Talegaon plant in the western state of Maharashtra, a move that will allow the U.S. automaker to exit the country as well increase Hyundai’s annual production.

Through its Sriperumbudur facility outside Chennai city and now the Talegaon plant, Hyundai aims to increase its cumulative production capacity to one million units per year, it said on Wednesday. The company had a production capacity of 820,000 units in the first half of this year. Continue reading “Hyundai Motor’s unit to buy General Motors’ India plant”

Aug 16 (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday marks the first anniversary of signing his signature clean energy legislation called the Inflation Reduction Act by leading a campaign to better explain to Americans what, exactly, it does.

The climate-focused bill provides billions of dollars in tax credits to help consumers buy electric vehicles and companies produce renewable energy, as Biden aims to decarbonize the mighty U.S. power sector. It also helps seniors pay for prescription drugs, expands some elements of Obamacare and asks wealthy Americans and corporations to pick up the tab. Continue reading “One year on, Biden still needs to explain his signature clean energy legislation”

BEIJING/SHANGHAI, Aug 16 (Reuters) – Chinese battery giant CATL(300750.SZ) on Wednesday launched a fast charging lithium iron phosphate or LFP battery capable of running 400 km (248 miles) on a 10-minute charge.

Mass production of the new battery called Shenxing is expected by the end of the year while electric vehicles equipped with Shenxing batteries will hit the market in the first quarter of 2024，Gao Han, chief technology officer of CATL’s E-Car Business, told an online briefing. Continue reading “China’s CATL launches fast charging LFP battery, mass production expected by year-end”

Aug 15 (Reuters) – United Auto Workers members have until Aug. 24 to vote to authorize strikes at the Detroit Three automakers if they don’t have a new contract deal in hand by the time the current agreement expires in about 30 days, the union said on Tuesday.

The UAW’s move comes as the union and General Motors (GM.N), Ford Motor (F.N) and Stellantis (STLAM.MI) have made little headway with their negotiations, UAW President Shawn Fain said in a Facebook meeting with members on Tuesday. Continue reading “UAW presses for strike vote at Detroit Three automakers”

Aug 15 (Reuters) – Tesla (TSLA.O) on Monday launched cheaper variants of its Model S sedan and Model X SUV with shorter driving ranges in the U.S., looking to increase sales as high borrowing costs hamper demand for expensive electric vehicles.

Tesla shares were down 2.6% on Tuesday, while rivals also lost ground as investors worried about a price war. Rivian (RIVN.O) fell by 3.5% while Lucid (LCID.O) lost 5.6%. Continue reading “Tesla launches cheaper Model S, X versions in US with shorter ranges”

NEW YORK, Aug 15 (Reuters) – New York state on Tuesday fined Avis Budget Group (CAR.O) $275,000 for refusing to rent vehicles to customers who did not have credit cards.

Letitia James, the state’s attorney general, said the civil fine resolved charges that the operator of Avis Car Rental, Budget Rent a Car and Payless Car Rental violated a state law against requiring credit cards for vehicle rentals. Continue reading “New York fines Avis Budget for denying car rentals to people who lack credit cards”

WASHINGTON, Aug 15 (Reuters) – U.S. space startups have slashed workforces and restructured operations to survive amid an investment drought that has grounded once-lofty aspirations.

While more established players like Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin spend billions on new, bigger rockets, rocket startup Astra Space (ASTR.O), satellite imagery firm Planet Labs (PL.N) and privately held engine maker Ursa Major recently laid off workers to cut costs. Continue reading “Focus: US space startups’ latest struggles marked by layoffs, shake-ups”

Source : PTI | New Delhi: Home-grown Ramkrishna Forgings on Monday announced bagging a USD 13.65 million (about INR 107 crore) order from clients in the North American region. The order is for supply of rear axle and transmission components, the company said in regulatory filing.

“Ramkrishna Forgings strengthens its North American presence through…securing a substantial business contract valued at USD 13.65 million for supplying rear axle and transmission components,” it said. Continue reading “Ramkrishna Forgings bags USD 13.65 million order in North America”

BEIJING, Aug 14 (Reuters) – Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) has cut prices in China for its Model Y long-range and performance versions starting on Aug. 14, the company said in a notice on Monday.

The car company dropped the starting prices of both models by 14,000 yuan ($1,934.58). The Model Y Long Range’s starting price drops 4.5% to 299,900 yuan and the starting price of the Model Y Performance is now 349,900 yuan, down 3.8%. Continue reading “Tesla cuts prices in China for some Model Y versions”

Souce : PTI | Sedans are still holding strong for Mercedes-Benz India despite the demand for SUVs soaring in the overall Indian passenger cars market, according to company Managing Director and CEO Santosh Iyer. Although the company expects the share of SUVs to its overall sales will be slightly skewed after the recent launch of its new GLC SUV, he said the demand for its sedans continues to be very strong.

“Fortunately our portfolio is a balanced sedan-SUV portfolio. We have the A Class, the B Class, the E Class and the S Class in sedan and then we have mirrored that in the SUV portfolio with a GLA, GLC, GLE and GLS. Right now the share of sedan versus SUVs is almost 48:52,” Iyer told PTI. However, he admitted with the launch of the GLC, the share of SUVs to the company’s overall sales could inch up to 55-57%. Yet, Iyer said the demand for sedans for Mercedes-Benz is still strong in India. Continue reading “Sedan demand remains strong despite surge in SUV growth: Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO”

DUBAI, Aug 13 (Reuters) – A U.S.-led naval coalition in the Gulf has warned ships in the region to stay away from Iranian waters to avoid possible seizure, the U.S. Navy said.

The warning shows tensions remain high in and around the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran seized tankers in late April and early May, while Washington and Tehran finalise a deal to free five U.S. citizens detained in Iran and the U.S. allows $6 billion in Iranian funds held in South Korea to be unfrozen. Continue reading “U.S.-led naval group warns ships to avoid Iranian waters to avoid seizure”

Source : PTI | The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation and IIIT-Delhi have joined hands to enhance passenger experience and promote technological advancement through a strategic collaboration. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the DMRC and the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology Delhi (IIIT-Delhi) on Thursday in the presence of Managing Director, DMRC, Vikas Kumar, officials said.

The agreement was signed through the institution’s Centre for Sustainable Mobility (CSM) to enhance passenger experience and promote technological advancements through a strategic collaboration, the DMRC said in its statement. Continue reading “Delhi Metro, IIIT-D join hands to enhance passenger experience”

BEIJING, Aug (Reuters) – Changan Ford Motor plans to set up a new-energy passenger car joint venture with state-owned Chongqing Changan Automobile (000625.SZ), a document published by China’s market regulator on Friday showed.

Changan Ford Motor will own a 60% stake and Chongqing Changan Automobile the remaining 40% stake. Changan Ford is a 50-50 joint venture between Ford Motor Co (F.N) and Changan Automobile, meaning Chongqing Changan will own more than 50% of the new venture. Continue reading “Changan Ford Motor to set up electric car JV with Chongqing Changan Auto”

Aug 11 (Reuters) – Chrysler parent Stellantis (STLAM.MI) sharply criticized the demands of the United Auto Workers (UAW) union on Friday, saying they need “a focus on reality from everyone involved.”

Stellantis North America Chief Operating Officer Mark Stewart said in a letter to employees seen by Reuters the automaker is “committed to working with the UAW to reach an agreement based on economic realism.” Continue reading “Chrysler owner calls for focus on reality in UAW labor talks”

Aug (Reuters) – A patriotic call by China’s bestselling automaker to band the industry together and “demolish the old legends” of the global market has gone viral, drawing both raves and a rebuke from a rival.

BYD (002594.SZ) used an event this week to mark a production milestone to celebrate a bigger purpose: the emergence of China as a global auto manufacturing powerhouse. Continue reading “BYD calls on China automakers to unite, ‘demolish the old’ in global push”

HANOI, Aug (Reuters) – Vietnamese electric vehicle maker VinFast said it expects to start trading on the Nasdaq as soon as next week, sparking a surge in the shares of its parent conglomerate and its blank-check merger partner.

The Vietnam-listed shares of Vingroup rose almost 7% on Friday to 72,600 dong ($3.06), a one-year high. New York-listed shares in Black Spade (BSAQ.A), the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that is merging with VinFast for the listing, jumped 73% to close at $18.50 on Thursday. Continue reading “Vietnamese EV maker VinFast gets go-ahead for Nasdaq SPAC listing”

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug (Reuters) – California just supercharged the self-driving car industry.

Following a contentious state agency vote, Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Waymo and General Motors’ Cruise are allowed to take paying passengers day or night throughout San Francisco, solidifying the tech hub as the center of the autonomous vehicle (AV) industry. It marks a significant step forward for the nascent technology. Continue reading “San Francisco moves to center of robotaxi universe after California agency vote”

Aug (Reuters) – Ford Motor (F.N) expects to incorporate more and better software into the trucks and vans in its highly profitable Ford Pro commercial vehicle business and grow revenues by $4,000-$5,000 per vehicle in the future, a top executive said on Thursday.

Navin Kumar, chief financial officer of Ford Pro, said the automaker would look to boost revenue with software- and data-driven fleet services, safety and security services, partial vehicle autonomy and insurance. Continue reading “Ford exec expects software to boost revenue for commercial trucks, vans”

BERLIN, Aug (Reuters) – Semiconductor shortages that have created bottlenecks for Germany’s car industry will take years to resolve despite chipmakers’ plans to build factories in the country, a senior Audi manager was quoted as saying on Friday.

German automakers and electronics producers have been hit hard by manufacturing delays, caused by a global shortfall of chips. Executives and policymakers are re-thinking supply lines and trying to reduce reliance on a handful of Asian and U.S. chip suppliers. Continue reading “Chip shortage in Germany’s car industry will last years – Audi manager”

Source : PTI | New Delhi: Billionaire Gautam Adani’s group is prepared to go ahead alone on the USD 50 billion green hydrogen project after its French partner, TotalEnergies SE, put investment in the venture on hold following allegations of fraud. Adani group CFO Robbie Singh in an investor call on first-quarter earnings of Adani Enterprises Ltd last week stated that the project is not dependent on the equity from TotalEnergies and the group is going ahead with the investment with or without the French giant.

TotalEnergies had last year agreed to take a 25% stake in Adani New Industries Ltd (ANIL), which is building the green hydrogen project. The French energy giant in February paused the planned USD 4 billion investment pending an investigation into a US short seller’s allegations of accounting and stock manipulation, which Adani denies. Continue reading “Adani to go ahead with USD 50 bn hydrogen project with or without TotalEnergies”

Source : PTI | The reopening of the application window for companies operating under the production linked incentive (PLI) scheme within the automobile sector is not part of the current agenda, as conveyed during a parliamentary session on Friday.

In a meticulously worded written response directed to the esteemed Lok Sabha, the Minister of State for Heavy Industries, Krishan Pal Gurjar, disclosed that the ministry is steadfastly overseeing the execution of two distinct PLI initiatives, namely those encompassing the automobile and auto components sector, as well as the advanced chemistry cell (ACC) battery storage sector. Continue reading “No plan to reopen application window for PLI auto: Govt”

Aug (Reuters) – Ford Motor (F.N) expects to incorporate more and better software into the trucks and vans in its highly profitable Ford Pro commercial vehicle business and grow revenues by $4,000-$5,000 per vehicle in the future, a top executive said on Thursday.

Navin Kumar, chief financial officer of Ford Pro, said the automaker would look to boost revenue with software- and data-driven fleet services, safety and security services, partial vehicle autonomy and insurance. Continue reading “Ford exec expects software to boost revenue for commercial trucks, vans”