LOS ANGELES, (Reuters) – Toymaker Basic Fun’s team that oversees ocean shipments of Tonka trucks and Care Bears for Walmart (WMT.N) and other retailers is racing to reroute cargo away from the Suez Canal following militant attacks on vessels in the Red Sea.

Suppliers for the likes of IKEA, Home Depot (HD.N), Amazon (AMZN.O) and retailers around the world are doing the same as businesses grapple with the biggest shipping upheaval since the COVID-19 pandemic threw global supply chains into disarray, sources in the logistics industry said. Continue reading “Red Sea shipping workarounds add costs, delays for suppliers, retailers”

“WAF AutoNews” is World’s No.1 in World Auto News &  Auto Think Tank !!
Click Here to See for yourself.

WAF THINK TANK

TVS, Hyundai, MG, VW Recognised for Industry Best Practices by World Auto Forum | 9th IVASS powered by Top Leaders at WAF LOKMATTIMES

Key Takeaways on Customers, Growth & Profitability of Vehicle After Sales Service | 9th IVASS WAF Continue reading “WAF Auto News | The Auto World This Week (29th December 2023)”

BEIJING, Dec 28 (Reuters) – Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi (1810.HK) took the wraps off its first electric vehicle on Thursday and promptly announced it was aiming to become one of the world’s top five automakers.

The sedan, dubbed the SU7 with the SU short for Speed Ultra, is a highly anticipated model that Chief Executive Lei Jun touted as having “super electric motor” technology capable of delivering acceleration speeds faster than Tesla (TSLA.O) cars and Porsche’s EVs. Continue reading “China’s Xiaomi unveils first electric car, plans to become top automaker”

Source : PTI | State-owned NTPC is looking towards listing its green energy vertical in the next 1-2 years, as it anticipates higher demand going forward, its chairman and managing director Gurdeep Singh said on Wednesday. He also said that the entity is expecting a 30-40 per cent rise in capex to cater to increased power demand in the country.

“Maybe I think (an IPO) down the line in next one to two years… as we add capacity and there is a pipeline of growth,” Singh said in response to a question on whether the company was looking for listing its green energy vertical. Continue reading “NTPC plans to list green energy vertical in next 1-2 years: CMD Gurdeep Singh”

Summary

• Volkswagen India strengthens network presence in Uttar Pradesh: With the latest additions to its network in the state, the Brand now holds a strong presence in the region with a total of nine sales and eight service touchpoints
• The Brand has inaugurated two dealerships in Uttar Pradesh – Bareilly and Lucknow
• Both showrooms boast of a three-car display of India’s safest portfolio of cars: including the 5-star GNCAP-rated Volkswagen Virtus and Taigun, along with the globally acclaimed SUVW Tiguan
• Ensuring customer convenience and peace of mind, the dealerships also offer Express Service and door-to-door service via Volkswagen Assistance and Mobile Service Unit, complemented by a service and spares workshop in a nearby location
  Continue reading “Volkswagen India inaugurates two new touchpoints in Uttar Pradesh, continues to build a robust network presence across the country”

Source : PTI | Toyota Kirloskar Motor on Wednesday said it expects to continue the strong momentum next year after closing 2023 with record sales as rising demand from tier II and III markets is slated to fuel further growth. The company is set for a record year in terms of sales in 2023. It has already clocked a total of 2,10,479 units in the January-November period of 2023, beating the previous highest yearly sales of 1.72 lakh units in 2012.

“At TKM (Toyota Kirloskar Motor), we are equally confident for the next year, fuelled by the rising demand from tier II and III markets and overall buoyant customer sentiments. Our primary focus is on further elevating the customer experience to meet their evolving needs,” company Vice President of Sales and Strategic Marketing, Atul Sood said in a statement. Continue reading “Toyota Kirloskar confident of continuing strong growth in 2024”

Source : PTI | Around 19,700 GPS-based navigation devices, known as Fog PASS, are helping loco pilots operate trains with minimal disruptions and delay while ensuring safety of passengers, railways sources said. Officials say that as fog has begun to affect the visibility in the morning hours, these devices are coming in handy in the smooth running of trains.

“Every year we increase our procurement so that we have enough stock of the device to use in times of need. In March 2021, we had around 12,742 Fog PASS devices,” a senior railway official said. Continue reading “Railways deploy close to 20,000 Fog PASS devices for smooth train run: Sources”

Source : PTI | The Noida Police on Wednesday issued a traffic advisory for December 31, cautioning the public about diversions that will come up near crowded markets and shopping malls on New Year’s Eve. The police also warned of strict action in the form of hefty fines and vehicle seizures against those found flouting the traffic rules, especially in cases of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

In the advisory, the police said various traffic arrangements and diversions will be made to reduce vehicle congestion on roads on New Year’s Eve. Continue reading “Noida Police issues traffic advisory for New Year’ s Eve, drunk drivers on radar”

BEIJING, (Reuters) – Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD (002594.SZ), said on Wednesday it has obtained a conditional testing license for level 3 (L3) autonomous driving on high-speed roads.

BYD was granted the first such license in China in July, the company said in a statement on its official Weibo account.

Earlier in December, BMW Group (BMWG.DE) said it had received a test license for L3 self-driving on high-speed roads in Shanghai, while Mercedes Benz (MBGn.DE) said it would carry out L3 tests on designated highways in Beijing. Continue reading “BYD has obtained conditional testing license for level 3 autonomous driving on high-speed roads”

SAN FRANCISCO, (Reuters) – Tesla (TSLA.O) is expected to post another record quarter for electric vehicle (EV) deliveries, likely shy of an ambitious 2 million annual internal target that CEO Elon Musk touted at the beginning of the year.

Faced with slowing sales, Tesla leveraged its industry-leading margins and slashed prices of its four car models globally in 2023, with a focus on China, where the company has lost market share to locals including BYD (002594.SZ). Continue reading “Tesla deliveries to hit record, but fall short of Musk’s aspirations”

LONDON,  (Reuters) – Self-driving cars could be on some British roads by 2026, the country’s transport minister Mark Harper said on Wednesday.

Cars with full self-driving technology are not currently permitted on Britain’s roads but the government’s Automated Vehicles (AV) legislation is going through parliament, meaning that a legal framework for them should be in place by the end of 2024, said Harper.

“Probably by as early as 2026 people will start seeing some elements of these cars that have full self-driving capabilities being rolled out,” Harper told BBC Radio. Continue reading “Self-driving cars could be on UK roads by 2026 -minister”

SAN FRANCISCO, (Reuters) – General Motors has sued the city of San Francisco, seeking to recover more than $100 million, alleging that it was charged a higher tax bill than warranted because its Cruise self-driving car unit was improperly used to make the calculations.

In the case filed in California Superior Court in San Francisco, GM is seeking $108 million in back taxes over the course of seven years, as well as $13 million in penalties and interest, according to the complaint. The Detroit automaker said San Francisco-based Cruise is operated separately from GM, generates only a minimal amount of sales and should not be used to calculate GM’s liabilities in the city where the parent company has a limited presence. GM said in the lawsuit that it sold only about $677,000 worth of goods in San Francisco in 2022. Continue reading “GM sues San Francisco, seeking $121 million in back taxes, penalties”

Source : PTI | IPO-bound Ola Electric Mobility Ltd plans to utilise INR 1,226.43 crore out of the proceeds of its INR 5,500-crore public issue on capacity expansion of its cell manufacturing plant to 6.4 GWh from 5 GWh, according to preliminary papers filed by the company with capital markets regulator Sebi. The company, which had filed the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) last week is also looking to use INR 1,600 crore from the public fund raising on research and product development, while another INR 800 crore will be deployed to repay debt.

Ola Electric Mobility (OEM) which had on August 15, 2023 announced a line-up of electric motorcycles — Cruiser, Adventure, Roadster and Diamondhead — expects to begin delivery of the motorcycles in the first half of fiscal 2026. Continue reading “Ola Electric plans to deploy INR 1,226.43 cr of IPO proceeds on cell production capacity expansion”

Source : PTI | Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said that 1,400 new electric buses will be added to the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation by April next year. In the first phase, he flagged off 100 non-AC electric buses of the BMTC at Vidhana Soudha here.

“So far, Karnataka women have undertaken 120 crore rides in state transport buses for free since the launch of the Shakti scheme. A total of 40 lakh people travel on BMTC every day. In this, women of all castes, all religions and all walks of life are travelling for free,” he said. Continue reading “By April, 1,400 new electric buses will be inducted in BMTC: Karnataka CM”

Source : PTI | State-ownedPower Grid Corporation on Tuesday said that it has acquired two special purpose vehicles (SPV) to implement power transmission projects — Vataman Transmission and Koppal II Gadag II Transmission from PFC Consulting. The Power Grid Corporation had bagged these two projects under tariff-based competitive bidding conducted by PFC Consulting, two separate BSE filings showed.

The Koppal II Gadag II Transmission Ltd (KIIGIITL) was acquired on Tuesday to establish a transmission system for ‘Transmission Scheme for Integration of Renewable Energy Zone (Phase-II) in Koppal-II (Phase-A & B) and GadagII (Phase-A) in Karnataka’, on build, own, operate and transfer (BOOT) basis”, it explained.

Continue reading “Power Grid Corp acquires 2 special purpose vehicles to implement transmission projects”

Source : PTI | Mumbai: Operating profit of offshore rig operators in India is likely to jump 30 % next fiscal on the back of strong global demand for rigs amid healthy crude prices and elevated day rate which has doubled to USD 85,000 from the last year’s level, says a report by Crisil Ratings. The day rate is the amount of money paid by the operator to the drilling contractor for each day that the rig is used to drill a well.

In the absence of significant investment towards rig addition, growth will bolster the returns and debt metrics of rig operators and strengthen their credit risk profiles, it added.

Continue reading “Operating profit of offshore rig operators may jump 30% in FY25: Report”

TOKYO, Dec 27 (Reuters) – Toyota Motor’s (7203.T) global production jumped 11% in November to a record level, bouncing back from last year’s supply chain disruptions and benefiting from robust demand both in Japan and overseas.

Output for November climbed to 926,573 vehicles, while worldwide sales increased 14% from a year earlier when automakers globally were bedevilled by shortages of semiconductors. Both figures include Toyota’s Lexus luxury brand. Continue reading “Toyota’s global output surges to record in November on strong demand”

BEIJING, Dec 27 (Reuters) – Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD (002594.SZ), said on Wednesday it has obtained a conditional testing license for level 3 (L3) autonomous driving on high-speed roads.

BYD was granted the first such license in China in July, the company said in a statement on its official Weibo account.

Earlier in December, BMW Group (BMWG.DE) said it had received a test license for L3 self-driving on high-speed roads in Shanghai, while Mercedes Benz (MBGn.DE) said it would carry out L3 tests on designated highways in Beijing. Continue reading “BYD has obtained conditional testing license for level 3 autonomous driving on high-speed roads”

Source : PTI | India’s first-ever payment in rupees for crude oil purchased from the UAE is helping the world’s third largest energy consumer push for taking the local currency global, as it looks for similar deals with other suppliers, officials said, adding internationalisation is a process and there are no targets.

With the nation more than 85 % dependent on imports for meeting its oil needs, India has been pursuing a three-pronged strategy of buying from the cheapest available source, diversifying sources of supply and not breaching any international obligation like the price cap in case of Russian oil. Continue reading “First rupee payment for oil to UAE: India looks for more deals, no targets: Officials”

Source : PTI | New Delhi: With general elections on the horizon, the government’s privatisation bandwagon has almost but stalled as a government wary of being accused of selling family silver opts for minority stake sales on stock exchanges over outright privatisation. The result — the disinvestment target for current fiscal year is again likely to be missed.

Big ticket privatisation plans such as that of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) and CONCOR are already on the backburner and analysts feel meaningful privatisation can happen only after April/May general elections.

Continue reading “Disinvestment fetches over INR 4.20 lakh cr in 10 years but target to be missed again in FY24”

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – Tesla (TSLA.O) is recalling just over 120,000 Model S and Model X vehicles in the United States over the risk of doors being unlocked and opening during a crash, the automaker said Friday.

Tesla released an over-the-air (OTA) software update for model years 2021-2023 that do not comply with federal safety standards for side-impact protection, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said. Continue reading “Tesla recalls 120,000 vehicles over doors that could unlock in crash”

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – Truck engine maker Cummins Inc (CMI.N) has agreed in principle to pay a $1.675 billion fine for installing devices on hundreds of thousands of engines to allow them to emit excess pollution, the largest-ever civil penalty for a Clean Air Act violation, the U.S. Justice Department said on Friday.

The Department said Cummins allegedly installed so-called “defeat devices” to bypass or disable emissions controls such as emission sensors and onboard computers. Continue reading “Cummins to pay record-setting $1.675 billion US environmental fine”

LOS ANGELES, (Reuters) – The angular, polarizing design of the Cybertruck will help boost the Tesla brand, the electric vehicle maker’s chief designer said on Thursday, adding that the pickup was no experiment.

“Love it or hate it, it’s a conversation starter, and it gets people talking about the brand,” Tesla Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen said at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, which is adding Cybertruck models to a Tesla exhibit. Continue reading “Cybertruck designer says Tesla stainless steel pickup is no experiment”

LONDON, (Reuters) – U.S. startup ClearMotion will supply its active suspension technology for Chinese EV maker Nio’s (9866.HK) upcoming ET9 in a contract covering 750,000 cars over the lifetime of the luxury sedan model, the two companies said on Saturday.

Nio was due to launch the ET9 on Saturday and the electric vehicle should go into production in late 2024.

ClearMotion founder and chief technology officer Zack Anderson told Reuters that the company’s ClearMotion1 suspension system uses a combination of hardware – a small unit containing a motor and power electronics sits in each wheel well of a vehicle – and software to read the road ahead and cut motion inside the car by “about 75% compared to the best technology in the market today”. Continue reading “ClearMotion to supply smooth suspension tech for Nio’s ET9 EV”

XIAN,(Reuters) – Chinese electric car maker Nio (9866.HK) on Saturday unveiled a flagship model featuring self-developed technologies including semiconductors, betting they would help prop up earnings, as a bruising price war and slowing car demand weigh on profitability.

The ET9 executive sedan, positioned in the same class as Mercedes Benz’s (MBGn.DE) Maybach and Porsche’s (PSHG_p.DE) Panamera series, is expected to start delivery in the first quarter of 2025 at an estimated price of 800,000 yuan ($112,178), Nio’s founder and chief executive William Li said at the company’s “Nio Day” annual event. Continue reading “China’s Nio launches flagship EV to take on Maybach, Panamera”

BANGKOK, (Reuters) – Major Japanese auto manufacturers will invest 150 billion baht ($4.34 billion) in Thailand over the next five years, a Thai government spokesperson said on Monday, supporting the Southeast Asian country’s transition to making electric vehicles.

Toyota Motor (7203.T) and Honda Motor (7267.T) will invest about 50 billion baht each, while Isuzu Motors (7202.T) will invest 30 billion baht and Mitsubishi Motors (7211.T) 20 billion baht, spokesperson Chai Wacharoke said, adding this would include the production of electric pickup trucks. Continue reading “Japan automakers to invest $4.3 bln in Thailand over 5 years -Thai govt”

TOKYO, (Reuters) – Toyota Motor’s (7203.T) small car unit Daihatsu Motor will compensate 423 domestic suppliers with which it has direct business relations as its plants in Japan remain idled due to a safety scandal, a spokesperson said on Monday.

The small car specialist has halted production in Japan until the end of next month, the spokesperson said.

The company will consider compensating suppliers based on past business volumes and is working to assess the impact of the stoppage on its sprawling supplier network, he added. Continue reading “Toyota’s Daihatsu to compensate suppliers over output halt”

PTI

European automaker Volkswagen India has extended its enhanced service support to affected customers in Tamil Nadu following the impact of heavy rains and flooding in the state, the company said on Saturday. The initiative, with effect from December 22, would offer service support to flood affected car owner including Roadside Assistance, special benefits on parts, labour costs and car care treatment among others.

Continue reading “Volkswagen India extends service support to flood-hit customers in Tamil Nadu”

By David Shepardson

By David Shepardson

By Nichola Groom and Cath Turner

Reuters

Source : PTI | New Delhi: The government on Thursday said there are no tolled national highways in the country that have completely recovered the capital cost. In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said there is no provision for closing of user fee plaza after completion of concession period/recovery of capital cost as per the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008.

“There are no tolled national highways (Public/ Private funded) in the country of which capital cost has been completely recovered,” he said. Continue reading “No tolled highway with full capital cost recovery: Nitin Gadkari”

Source : PTI | New Delhi: India is likely to see 1 crore Electric Vehicle (EV) sales a year and the segment is expected to generate about 5 crore jobs by 2030, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said on Friday. Addressing the 19th EV EXPO 2023, Gadkari, “As per the Vahan database, 34.54 lakh EVs are already registered in India.”

The Union Road Transport and Highways minister asserted that India has the potential to become number 1 EV maker in the world and the government is committed to making India a self-reliant country in clean energy production and mass application.

Continue reading “India expected to see 1 cr EV sales annually by 2030, create 5 cr jobs: Gadkari”

OSLO, (Reuters) – Sweden’s Transport Agency said on Friday it is investigating suspension failures in Tesla (TSLA.O) cars in a probe similar to that carried out by neighbouring Norway’s traffic safety regulator.

“We can … confirm that investigative work is also underway with us,” the Swedish agency said in an emailed statement to Reuters. Continue reading “Swedish regulator investigates Tesla suspension failures”

BEIJING, (Reuters) – Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD (002594.SZ) is to build a new energy vehicle production base in Hungary, it said on Friday.

The new facility to be built in Szeged, southern Hungary is expected to create thousands of local jobs, BYD said in a statement on its official WeChat account. Continue reading “China’s BYD to build new energy vehicle production base in Hungary”

BEIJING/SHANGHAI, Dec 22 (Reuters) – Tesla (TSLA.O) has acquired land in Shanghai for a megapack battery manufacturing plant with production expected to start in the fourth quarter of 2024, Chinese state media reported on Friday.

Tesla paid 222.42 million yuan ($31.13 million) for use rights to a 19.7-hectare (48.7 acres) plot, a separate government statement said on Thursday. The site is near an existing Tesla plant producing Model 3 and Model Y cars. Continue reading “Tesla acquires Shanghai land for megapack battery plant”

BEIJING, (Reuters) – (This Dec. 21 story has been corrected to clarify that the ban was on the export of technology to make rare earth magnets and that the ban on technology to extract and separate critical materials was already in place, in paragraphs 1 and 6. It also removes context and the comment on rare earth processing operations, in paragraphs 3 and paragraphs 18-20)

China, the world’s top processor of rare earths, banned the export of technology to make rare earth magnets on Thursday, adding it to a ban already in place on technology to extract and separate the critical materials. Continue reading “China bans export of rare earths processing tech over national security”

SHANGHAI, (Reuters) – Chinese automaker Geely (0175.HK) warned on Friday its EV sales are likely to be impacted by a delay in deliveries due to the “situation” in the Red Sea, where Yemeni militants are attacking vessels, forcing shippers to take longer, more expensive routes.

Geely, China’s second largest automaker by sales, told Reuters that most of the shipping firms it uses to export its electric vehicles to Europe have plans to go around the Cape of Good Hope to avoid the Suez Canal, the shortest route from Asia to Europe, due to the hostilities. Continue reading “China’s Geely warns Red Sea attacks to delay Europe-bound EV shipments”

(Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin placed Russia’s biggest car dealership under temporary state management on Friday, in a step the Kremlin said was driven by commercial logic but which its founder said made the country look uninvestable.

Rolf, which is owned by a Cyprus-based firm and was founded by Russian businessman Sergei Petrov, was one of the first car dealerships to emerge after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Continue reading “Putin seizes control of Russia’s biggest car dealership”