Electric Vehicles

CATL’s $4 bln IPO offers trade truce reality check

14 May 2025

The world’s biggest listing this year excludes US onshore investors. That reduces the Chinese battery maker's costs and risks if tensions between the countries persist. Founder Robin Zeng can court money from Middle East, others may struggle to replace American capital.

Geely’s electric vehicle US delisting is shrewd

8 May 2025

The Chinese group is offering to take $6 bln Zeekr private less than a year after the unit’s New York IPO. Geely is reorganising its sprawling auto businesses to find synergies. But the price of its buyout is opportunistic and leverages US-China financial decoupling fears.

Carmakers go on the defensive in Shanghai

24 Apr 2025

China’s annual auto show is host to everything from flying vehicles to dancing robots. But they have all been sidelined by the government forcing manufacturers to put self-driving safety first after a fatal Xiaomi crash. It’ll open a new front in a vicious price war.

Tesla heads for a messy lane-changing wreck

22 Apr 2025

Car sales tumbled 20% to $14 bln, pushing quarterly operating profit down 66%. A self-driving moonshot and boss Elon Musk’s role advising the White House are making matters worse. Turning vehicles into software-powered appliances would make sense, but only if they’re affordable.

CATL can turn Trump’s tariffs to its advantage

15 Apr 2025

The world’s largest battery maker grew earnings by 33% in the first quarter. It may be on a roll. Levies and security concerns thwarted its US plans, but Washington’s chaotic trade regime and lack of support for electrification give Chinese EV pioneers a sharper edge in Europe.

Ola challenges investability of Indian startups

9 Apr 2025

Shares of the SoftBank-backed electric scooter maker have plunged one-third below its IPO price and revenue growth is sputtering. It’s the latest Indian startup to quickly run out of juice. The country's stock market may be resilient but its hottest debuts keep disappointing.

Geely is legacy carmakers’ electric poster child

25 Mar 2025

The $23 bln Chinese manufacturer’s core earnings rose 56% last year, mostly by defying shrinking demand for gas guzzlers in its home market. Yet it’s also nurturing fast-growing but often unprofitable EV brands like Zeekr. Rivals from Ford to Stellantis will look on with envy.

Xpeng’s smart cars confront commoditisation

19 Mar 2025

The $22 bln Chinese firm's assisted-driving systems helped propel its sales 33% in 2024. Now rivals including Tesla, BYD and Geely offer such tech at low prices. Throw in CEO He Xiaopeng's plan to mass produce flying cars in 2026 and the lossmaking group's strategy looks shakey.

BYD’s shareholders are too cautious by half

14 Mar 2025

They snapped up the $146 bln Chinese electric-car maker’s new stock offering after it unveiled an affordable smart-driving system. Yet they value the group lower than peers, even though the autos business sports better growth and margins. BYD deserves to trade at a big premium.

New Nissan CEO has little room to manoeuvre

11 Mar 2025

Japan’s struggling $10 bln automaker has picked an insider to succeed boss Makoto Uchida. A change is welcome. But any attempt to rekindle a deal with Honda or pursue a more radical turnaround will still come up against old obstacles, not least powerful alliance partner Renault.

VW’s Porsche woes make case for leadership shakeup

11 Mar 2025

The $62 bln German carmaker expects faster growth and a robust operating margin in 2025. CEO Oliver Blume is getting a boost from new models and cost cuts. Yet the sports car marque, which VW controls and Blume also runs, is stalling. It’s a good time to get a second driver.

Tesla’s future may be more GM than OMG

4 Mar 2025

The $970 bln electric-car titan survived near-death experiences thanks to faith in CEO Elon Musk. Autonomous-vehicle and talking-robot hype turbocharged its valuation. Now rising rivals and political toxicity may herald sales stagnation, while its edge in tech could narrow.

CATL’s electric-car hedge needs a hedge of its own

27 Feb 2025

Sales at the $163 bln Chinese company's energy storage unit generate a fifth of its top line and are growing at a rapid pace. But CATL's infrastructure ambitions will face as much Western scrutiny as its flagship battery business. Geographic diversification is in order.

Elon Musk is not India’s ideal foreign investor

20 Feb 2025

The country's high import levies have failed to get the Tesla boss to make his vehicles locally. New Delhi may be considering concessions and exemptions to entice him instead. But Donald Trump's trade wars leave India with less leverage to wrangle coveted factory jobs from Musk.

Nikola crash bookends capital market morality tale

19 Feb 2025

The electric-truck maker once worth $26 bln has joined a clutch of rivals in bankruptcy. The battery powered vehicle startups combined hard-to-gauge promise with big-up-front costs, yet nevertheless became SPAC darlings. The slower route to an IPO might serve a purpose after all.

China’s EV laggards grasp at a new roadmap

11 Feb 2025

State-backed carmakers Dongfeng and Changan may be about to merge. On paper, the duo could replace BYD as largest by vehicle sales. The country's industry is ripe for consolidation. But size alone won’t help navigate rapidly changing tastes, a price war and ailing partnerships.

Foxconn can cast wary eye over Nissan

7 Feb 2025

The $75 bln group's possible interest in the automaker meshes with its EV ambitions. Nissan has a global brand and factories. But it's a battery laggard and has financial woes. Add on US tariff risks and Foxconn's poor M&A track record, and Nissan does not look like a must-have.

Tesla and SpaceX are ideal trade war hostages

5 Feb 2025

If President Trump makes good on tariff threats, smaller nations can amplify any retaliation: target his allies. The $1.2 trln carmaker and $350 bln satellite firm’s sky-high valuations benefit from Elon Musk’s political ties. They aren’t pricing in risks to hefty overseas sales.

Stalling Honda-Nissan deal ignores tariff hazards

5 Feb 2025

The two struggling Japanese automakers would be among the hardest hit if the US imposes 25% duties on imports from Mexico and Canada. It would be easier to face any fallout together. But merger talks are floundering. Ditching the tie-up risks being an expensive mistake.

Elon Musk dangerously overrides Tesla’s autopilot

29 Jan 2025

The $1.2 trln electric-car maker should be on cruise control, with batteries and AI guiding it toward its lofty valuation. Instead, the CEO is steering things haphazardly, evidenced in part by the latest dip in gross profit margin. Driver assistance works in the boardroom, too.