COPENHAGEN, May 4 (Reuters) – Shipping group Maersk (MAERSKb.CO) made its last cargo shipment to a Russian port this week and took impairment losses and writedowns of $718 because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Danish firm said on Wednesday.
Maersk, which has decided to withdraw completely from Russia, carried out its last cargo operation in a Russian port on Monday, but still has 20,000 containers stranded in Russia. Continue reading “Maersk made final shipment to Russia this week”
SHANGHAI, May 3 (Reuters) – Shanghai authorities helped Tesla transport over 6,000 workers and carry out necessary disinfection work to reopen its factory last month amid the city’s lockdown, according to a letter that Tesla sent to local officials and seen by Reuters.
The letter, dated May 1 and addressed to local authorities in Shanghai’s Lingang Special Area, outlined the lengths to which the city went to help Tesla, indicating the U.S. automaker’s importance to Shanghai as the city tries to restart business while curbing the spread of COVID-19. Continue reading “EXCLUSIVE Shanghai authorities stepped up to help Tesla reopen factory”
FRANKFURT/MILAN, May 3 (Reuters) – Stellantis (STLA.MI) has agreed to buy the Share Now car sharing business from BMW (BMWG.DE) and Mercedes-Benz (MBGn.DE) as the two German groups focus more on the software part of their mobility alliance.
Formed last year through the merger of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot maker PSA, Stellantis wants to become a global leader in car-sharing, using this acquisition announced on Tuesday to expand its existing business in the area. Continue reading “Stellantis buys car-sharing business as BMW, Mercedes take different route”
SAN FRANCISCO, May 3 (Reuters) – A battery startup founded by a former Tesla (TSLA.O) engineer announced on Tuesday plans for U.S.-based mass production of next-generation materials aimed at cutting costs, boosting driving ranges and reducing the industry’s reliance on China.
Sila Nanotechnologies will invest in the low hundreds of millions of dollars in a new plant in Washington state due to open in 2024, Sila CEO Gene Berdichevsky told Reuters. Continue reading “Ex-Tesla engineer aims to build next-generation battery materials in U.S.”
May 4 (Reuters) – Aston Martin Lagonda (AML.L) on Wednesday named former Ferrari NV (RACE.MI) boss Amedeo Felisa as its new chief executive officer as the British luxury carmaker works on emulating the Italian carmaker’s success and electrifying its brand.
Felisa will take over with immediate effect from Tobias Moers, who joined the company in 2020 from shareholder Mercedes-Benz’s (MBGn.DE) high-performance AMG brand and served as CEO and chief technical officer. Continue reading “Aston Martin taps former Ferrari boss Felisa for CEO”
BERLIN, May 2 (Reuters) – Volkswagen’s (VOWG_p.DE) premium brands Audi and Porsche will join Formula One after convincing the German automaking group that the move will bring in more money than it will cost, VW Chief Executive Herbert Diess said on Monday.
Discussions by the board of directors about the two brands’ plans had created some divisions, said Diess at an event in Wolfsburg, where the German carmaker is headquartered. Continue reading “Audi, Porsche to join Formula One, VW CEO says”
PUNE, India, May 2 (Reuters) – To make its first electric vehicle for the consumer market, India’s Tata Motors Ltd (TAMO.NS) repurposed an unused shop floor at its flagship plant. Here, there’s no fancy assembly line – Nexon SUV bodies designed for gasoline models are wired and fitted with battery packs by hand.
The area, which could be mistaken for a prototype lab, initially made just eight SUVs a day. But demand has shot up over the two years since the Nexon EV’s launch. Tata now makes more than 100 a day though much of that is now handled at another plant nearby. Continue reading “Tata, India’s electric vehicle king, takes a frugal road less travelled”
PARIS, April 29 (Reuters) – The public transport operator (RATP) in Paris temporarily suspended on Friday the use of 149 electric buses made by Bollore’s (BOLL.PA) Bluebus brand after two of the vehicles caught fire.
“The RATP has requested a full report from the manufacturer Bollore to explain the causes of these incidents,” the state-owned transport company said in a statement. Continue reading “Paris withdraws Bollore’s electric buses after two catch fire”
MUMBAI, April 29 (Reuters) – Tata Motors said on Friday it plans to launch electric cars with a minimum range of 500 kilometres (310 miles) and advanced technology features, targeting buyers in India and beyond.
The first electric vehicles (EVs) built using its new platform should be on the road in 2025, Tata (TAMO.NS) said during an event in Mumbai where it unveiled a concept model. Continue reading “Tata Motors maps out long-range EVs for India and beyond”
April 29 (Reuters) – Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk sold $8.5 billion worth of shares in the electric vehicle maker, U.S. securities filings showed, in sales likely aimed at helping finance his planned purchase of Twitter Inc (TWTR.N).
Musk said in a tweet on Thursday that there are “no further TSLA sales planned after today”. He sold about 9.6 million shares this week, according to the filings on Thursday and Friday, equating to 5.6% of his stake in the company. Continue reading “Musk sells Tesla shares worth $8.5 billion ahead of Twitter takeover”
BENGALURU, April 29 (Reuters) – India’s top carmaker Maruti Suzuki (MRTI.NS) beat estimates for quarterly profit margins on Friday as a string of price hikes and lower sales promotion expenses helped it offset the impact of higher raw material prices and global chip shortages.
Maruti’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization margin – a key measure of profitability – stood at 9.08%, topping analysts’ estimates of 8.065%, according to Refinitiv IBES data. Continue reading “India’s top carmaker beats margin expectations on boost from price hikes”
WASHINGTON, April 29 (Reuters) – Tesla (TSLA.O) is recalling about 48,000 Model 3 Performance vehicles in the United States because they may not display the speedometer while in “Track Mode,” documents released Friday show.
The recall covers vehicles from the 2018 through 2022 model years. Tesla will perform an over-the-air software update to address the issue. Tesla said a firmware update released in December unintentionally removed the speed unit from the user interface. Continue reading “Tesla recalls 48,000 U.S. vehicles over speed display”
April 27 (Reuters) – Renault (RENA.PA) will transfer its 68% stake in Russia’s biggest carmaker Avtovaz to an auto research institute for one symbolic rouble, Russia said on Wednesday, the latest example of local institutions snapping up bargains as Western firms flee.
The trade ministry also said Renault’s factory in Moscow, which produces cars under the Renault and Nissan brands, would be passed to the city’s government, in another sign of what Russian authorities plan to do with Western assets. Continue reading “Renault to offload its stake in Lada maker for one rouble, Russia says”
April 27 (Reuters) – Hertz Global Holdings Inc (HTZ.O) new chief executive on Wednesday said he expects Americans’ pent-up desire for a summer vacation to lead to more strong rental car demand despite rising inflation.
The rental car company, which emerged from bankruptcy last year, beat analysts’ first-quarter expectations for top- and bottom-line growth at a time when tight vehicle supply is allowing rental companies to charge record rates. Continue reading “Hertz sees strong summer rental demand, beats Wall Street expectations”
BERLIN, April 27 (Reuters) – Prosecutors in Germany, Italy and Hungary have conducted searches related to the use of illegal defeat devices that provide rigged emissions readings to comply with European Union regulations in Suzuki (7269.T) diesel vehicles.
German prosecutors said in a statement on Wednesday that their investigation concerns persons responsible at Suzuki, world’s No. 4 carmaker Stellantis (STLA.MI), which supplied the Japanese carmaker with diesel engines, and Japanese auto parts maker Marelli, which supplied parts for those engines. Continue reading “European raids over defeat devices in Suzuki diesel engines”
April 27 (Reuters) – Several companies plan to open production facilities for lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries or components in North America and Europe by 2025, as the alternative to nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) cells begins to take root outside China. Continue reading “Factbox: Electric car battery showdown brews in West”
LONDON, April 27 (Reuters) – A regulatory gap allows automakers like Ford (F.N) and BMW (BMWG.DE) to make U.S. cars that emit more ultrafine particles that harm human health than equivalent models sold in Europe and other markets, according to new research.
British testing specialist Emissions Analytics took four pairs of cars – from Ford, BMW, Toyota (STLA.MI) and Stellantis (STLA.MI) – and compared the impact of tailpipe filters that are widely used in Europe where regulations limit the number of harmful particles that can be emitted, but not in the United States where the same regulations do not apply. Continue reading “Lacking filters, U.S. cars set to emit a septillion more particles – research”
BEIJING/SHANGHAI, April 28 (Reuters) – Baidu and Pony.ai said on Thursday they had received permits from the Beijing municipal government to provide driverless ride-hailing services in a 60 sqm area in the Chinese capital.
Baidu said the permit would allow 10 of its autonomous vehicles to offer rides on the open roads in the area, without human drivers sitting behind the wheel. Continue reading “Baidu, Pony.ai receive permits for driverless ride-hailing in Beijing city area”
April 27 (Reuters) – U.S. new vehicle sales is expected to fall in April, as low inventories and rising interest rates boost prices amid high demand, consultants J.D. Power and LMC Automotive said.
U.S. retail sales of new vehicles in April could fall 23.8% to 1.1 million units from a year earlier, according to a report released by the consultants on Wednesday. Continue reading “U.S. auto sales to fall in April on tight inventories, rising rates – data”
DETROIT, April 27 (Reuters) – Ford Motor Co (F.N) posted better-than-expected quarterly results on Wednesday and maintained its profit forecast for the year, citing strong vehicle pricing that partly offset higher costs and inflation.
Chief Financial Officer John Lawler called the performance “mixed,” saying continued chip shortages hit the company hard, especially on its large and most profitable vehicles – the F-Series pickup and Expedition and Navigator SUVs. Continue reading “Ford rides higher vehicle prices to strong quarter, maintains forecast”
Hyderabad : One Moto India- The first-ever British Brand of Elegant and premium 2-Wheeler EV in India, has announced increasing manpower by 150% in its first hiring drive in India. The brand currently boasts a workforce of 35, and aims to take this number up to 100 by the end of fiscal.
The brand has been on an aggressive launch spree announcing three electric scooters within a span of 3 months- Byka, Electa, and Commuta. Continue reading “British Automobile Brand One Moto India Announces Increasing Manpower By 150 Percent”
SEOUL, April 27 (Reuters) – LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES) (373220.KS) booked a 24% quarterly profit drop on Wednesday, far milder than market estimates, as strong sales of batteries to Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) offset troubles at automotive clients where chip shortages have hit production.
Rising raw materials prices and supply-chain disruption set LGES up for a lean first quarter, but with Tesla reporting firm sales of its electric vehicles, LGES not only cushioned the blow, but said it has set itself up for a robust second quarter. Continue reading “S.Korea battery maker LGES sees brighter Q2 outlook, lifts capex”
TOKYO, April 27 (Reuters) – Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) on Wednesday posted record high global production in March, as overseas production made up for a drop off at home, highlighting the impact of factory stoppages and weaker consumer demand in Japan.
Japan’s largest automaker produced 866,775 vehicles worldwide in March it said, marking a 2.8% increase from the same month last year and a monthly record. Continue reading “Toyota reports record high global production for March, despite slump at home”
Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) lost $126 billion in value on Tuesday amid investor concerns that Chief Executive Elon Musk may have to sell shares to fund his $21 billion equity contribution to his $44 billion buyout of Twitter Inc (TWTR.N).
Tesla is not involved in the Twitter deal, yet its shares have been targeted by speculators after Musk declined to disclose publicly where his cash for the acquisition is coming from. The 12.2% drop in Tesla’s shares on Tuesday equated to a $21 billion drop in the value of his Tesla stake, the same as the $21 billion in cash he committed to the Twitter deal. Continue reading “Tesla loses $126 bln in value amid Musk Twitter deal funding concern”
BERLIN, April 27 (Reuters) – Mercedes-Benz (MBGn.DE) expects strong demand for high-end cars to allow it to offset rising raw material and transport costs with higher prices, forecasting a pick-up in deliveries once chip shortages ease.
While the German automaker’s high pricing strategy is in part based on its luxury products being scarce, it could have sold more vehicles in the first quarter without pushing prices down if it weren’t for the lack of chips, Chief Financial Officer Harald Wilhelm said on Wednesday. Continue reading “Strong demand lets Mercedes-Benz hike prices to offset costs”
PARIS, April 27 (Reuters) – A spokesperson for French carmaker Renault (RENA.PA) declined to comment on Wednesday on a report by Russia’s Interfax saying it would transfer its majority stake in carmaker Avtovaz (AVAZI_p.MM) to a Russian science institute.
Renault will have the right to buy the stake back within the next five to six years, Interfax reported, citing the Russian trade minister. He also said Renault’s stake in its Moscow plant would be passed to the city’s local government. Continue reading “Renault silent after media report about transfer of Avtovaz stake”
April 26 (Reuters) – Electric carmaker Lucid Group Inc (LCID.O) on Tuesday said it has signed an agreement with the government of Saudi Arabia for the purchase of up to 100,000 of its vehicles over the next 10 years.
Saudi Arabia commits to purchase 50,000 vehicles under the agreement, with an option to buy an additional 50,000 vehicles during the ten-year time frame, Lucid said in a statement. Continue reading “Lucid says Saudi Arabia will purchase up to 100,000 vehicles over 10 years”
NEW DELHI, April 26 (Reuters) – U.S. electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) is welcome to set up shop in India, make cars there for sale and export them, but must not import cars from China, the transport minister said on Tuesday.
“Making in China and selling here is not a good proposition,” the minister, Nitin Gadkari, said during a government conference. Continue reading “India says Tesla should not import cars from China for domestic sale”
LONDON, April 26 (Reuters) – Commercial electric vehicle (EV) startup Volta Trucks on Tuesday unveiled two smaller zero-emission truck models that will start production in 2025, opening more options for urban deliveries and in EU markets with restrictions for Sunday operations.
Stockholm-based Volta Trucks, which also operates in the UK, said it would launch a fleet of test vehicles of its 7.5 tonne and 12 tonne trucks for customers in 2024. Continue reading “Volta Trucks unveils two smaller truck models for urban markets”
NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Elon Musk clinched a deal to buy Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) for $44 billion cash on Monday in a transaction that will shift control of the social media platform populated by millions of users and global leaders to the world’s richest person.
It is a seminal moment for the 16-year-old company, which emerged as one of the world’s most influential public squares and now faces a string of challenges. Continue reading “Musk gets Twitter for $44 billion, to cheers and fears of ‘free speech’ plan”
GAYDON, England, April 26 (Reuters) – After decades of ups and downs, British carmaker Aston Martin Lagonda (AML.L) is charting a more efficient and profitable way forward, leaning on technology from shareholder Mercedes-Benz (MBGn.DE) to make the costly leap to electric vehicles (EVs).
Less than two years after billionaire Lawrence Stroll drove to the rescue of James Bond’s car brand of choice, Aston Martin has undergone a manufacturing makeover to lift margins and help it become more like rival Ferrari (RACE.MI). Continue reading “With lift from ‘big brother,’ Aston Martin chases after Ferrari”
April 26 (Reuters) – German carmakers BMW (BMWG.DE) and Volkswagen’s Audi (VOWG_p.DE) have suspended shipments of cars by rail from Germany to China due to the war in Ukraine, the Nikkei business daily reported on Tuesday.
The suspension comes almost two months after BMW said it had halted the export of cars to Russia and would stop production on the ground there. Continue reading “BMW and Audi suspend shipments by train to China – Nikkei”
“Automaker MG Motor India on Monday said it has partnered with Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) to bolster EV charging infrastructure across the country. The partnership with BPCL will add momentum to EV adoption by expanding opportunities for intercity travel as the two entities will install EV chargers across highways and within cities, the automaker said in a statement.
With BPCL’s vast customer reach and operations and MG’s strides in the EV space, the two entities can combine expertise to strategically identify charging sites, garner consumer insights, devise loyalty programs, and create technology to manage charging systems, it added. Continue reading “MG Motor India partners with BPCL to bolster EV charging infrastructure”
NEW DELHI, April 24 (Reuters) – Softbank-backed (9984.T) Ola Electric said on Sunday it will recall 1,441 of its electric scooters, weeks after one of its vehicles caught fire, prompting a government probe into the incident.
Scooters involving Indian start-ups Okinawa and PureEV have also been involved in fires, in what some say could be an early setback for a nascent sector that is key to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s carbon reduction and climate goals.
India launched an investigation into the fires last month, and formed a committee of experts to make recommendations on remedial steps. Okinawa recalled 3,215 vehicles this month. Continue reading “Softbank-backed Ola Electric to recall 1,441 e-scooters”
DETROIT, April 25 (Reuters) – General Motors Co (GM.N) and Ford Motor Co (F.N) will report first-quarter results this week in an environment that has become more hostile than executives projected when they last faced investors in January.
The far-reaching economic impact of the war in Ukraine, grinding supply-chain disruptions, inflation and rising U.S. interest rates all pose a threat to forecasts made by the two Detroit automakers in January.
BERLIN, April 25 (Reuters) – A German-funded consortium of carmakers and battery producers, including BMW (BMWG.DE), Umicore (UMI.BR) and BASF (BASFn.DE), is to develop a “battery passport” that traces the content and carbon footprint of batteries in Europe, Germany’s economy ministry said on Monday.
The consortium of 11 partners has received 8.2 million euros ($8.78 million) of government funding to develop a common classification and standards for gathering and disclosing data on the batteries, which could soon become mandatory under European Union regulations. Continue reading “German-funded consortium to develop ‘battery passport’ for Europe”
SEOUL, April 25 (Reuters) – Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS) posted a better-than-expected 19% rise in quarterly profit as favourable exchange rates more than made up for a jump in raw material costs and a drop in sales caused by the prolonged global chip shortage.
The company’s global car sales slid nearly 10% in the first quarter and Hyundai warned it expects further supply chain disruptions due to the lockdowns in several Chinese cities.
Like other automakers, Hyundai has raised prices to cope with soaring raw material expenses and logistics costs such as sourcing chips, and analysts expect further vehicle price hikes. Continue reading “Hyundai profit surges, favourable currency rates offset sales decline”
NEW DELHI, April 22 (Reuters) – India is planning new rules to make batteries used in scooters, motorcyles and three-wheeled rickshaws swappable across different models, part of a proposed new policy released by think-tank Niti Aayog.
Niti Aayog said the draft policy, which proposes standards for battery pack dimensions and charging connectors to support interoperability, will decouple battery costs from the upfront cost of buying electric vehicles, driving EV adoption.
Swappable batteries are not currently used in India’s fast-growing electric scooter segment on any commercial scale. Continue reading “India plans new battery swap policy for electric scooters, rickshaws”
BERLIN, April 22 (Reuters) – Europe’s carmakers should wean themselves off fossil fuels from 2040, chief executive of Volkswagen’s (VOWG_p.DE) Audi said on Friday, calling for quicker expansion of renewable energy capacity in Bavaria, where Audi is based, and elsewhere.
Discussions around a possible embargo on Russian gas in light of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine have raised pressure on companies and governments to expand investment into renewable energy, with Mercedes-Benz (MBGn.DE) promising new investments in wind and solar to help power its plants.
“Let’s be courageous as Europeans and take it upon ourselves to give up on fossil fuels completely from 2040,” Markus Duessmann said at a conference. “We must put all our energy towards battery-electric vehicles for individual mobility.” Continue reading “European carmakers should wean off fossil fuels by 2040, Audi chief says”
