Electric Vehicles

Chinese EV makers will drive around EU tariffs

12 Jun 2024

The bloc is imposing levies ranging from 17% to 38% on electric cars imported from the People’s Republic. Some, like BYD, can swallow the cost, while others will find workarounds. Europe’s policymakers will have to go back to the drawing board if they want to have a real impact.

China’s cars fine-tune their driving skills

21 May 2024

Automakers in the country are touting autonomous driving, and Tesla is preparing to join the fray. On this week’s Exchange podcast, Maxwell Zhou, CEO of Alibaba-backed DeepRoute.ai, explains why progress is accelerating and how that is already changing consumers’ expectations.

New Caledonia to Macron: it’s the economy, stupid

20 May 2024

Deadly riots prompted the French president to impose a state of emergency in the Pacific Ocean territory, which holds 5% of world nickel reserves and gives Paris a strategic outpost in the region. To revive the island, a new economic deal would work better than an army crackdown.

Inflation saps Inflation Reduction Act mini-me

16 May 2024

Australia is following the US with long-term support for greening the economy. But it's peanuts by comparison with just $15 bln for industry and nothing to boost sales of EVs and heat pumps. Fear of price rises and rate hikes ahead of an election has deflated ambition.

Biden’s China policy is backed into a corner

14 May 2024

The president quadrupled tariffs on electric cars from the People’s Republic as homegrown efforts stumble. China leads on tech, and the US depends on the undependable Tesla. Muddled policy on everything from steel to batteries will only up the pressure for more rearguard actions.

China tests EU resolve on export trade fight

14 May 2024

France’s Emmanuel Macron got little to show from President Xi Jinping’s European tour this month. In this Exchange podcast, MERICS expert Grzegorz Stec explains the difficulty of managing ties with Beijing and why balancing risk and business opportunity is so tricky.

Geely’s $5 bln carve-out slows down to speed

13 May 2024

The automaker's electric-vehicle unit Zeekr rose 35% after pricing its IPO at less than half its 2023 valuation. That suggests group Chair Li Shufu has learned from his overpriced deals to take Lotus and Polestar public and found a way to coax investors wary of China risk.

EU’s China car tariffs face a very high bar

6 May 2024

Brussels would need levies as high as 50% on Chinese imports to slow sales by BYD and rivals, double recent precedents. It'd prompt a sharp response. President Xi Jinping can use his visit this week to remind Europe’s carmakers how much they stand to lose in such a scenario.

Musk’s China jaunt keeps underwhelming status quo

30 Apr 2024

Hope that Tesla can push self-driving in the country added $82 bln to its value. China’s cheap manufacturing, ample battery supply, and potential direct sales requires the EV-maker’s boss to maintain copacetic relations. But even the best outcome cannot justify excitement.

Detroit’s revenue engines finally start to fire

25 Apr 2024

Ford and GM haven’t grown US electric sales since 2022, despite investing billions of dollars. But under the hood, GM’s new models are gaining momentum, and Ford is focusing on its cash-generating trucks and vans. It helps that they are accelerating in different directions.

Tesla thumbs a ride on uncertain low-cost future

23 Apr 2024

Elon Musk’s automaker is accelerating a plan to make cheaper electric car models. Yet its recent performance disappointed, and rivals like GM are resurgent. Tesla wants investors to believe the future will be better than the present, and as good as the past. It’s a stretch.

Musk’s next big payday matters more than his last

17 Apr 2024

Tesla shareholders will soon vote on the CEO’s court-voided $40 bln pay package. It’s not a tough decision. Recent departures and strategy shifts make Tesla’s value highly dependent on keeping Elon Musk motivated. But a new pay plan is needed too, and the stakes are even higher.

Germany engineers sharper China-EU autos debate

17 Apr 2024

Chancellor Olaf Scholz echoed Janet Yellen in using his visit to the People's Republic to warn against industrial overcapacity. But he also has reservations about Brussels’ potential EV protectionism. That suggests the bloc may yet take a more nuanced look at BYD and peers.

Airbus obsessives have a shaky grasp of history

9 Apr 2024

The $140 bln pan-European group is flying high as rival Boeing stutters. Now carmakers and others are wondering if similar collaboration could help them face down overseas competitors. But Airbus’s idiosyncrasies and convoluted road to success make copycat plans pie-in-the-sky.

Next Chinese trade war could benefit the planet

8 Apr 2024

As Beijing floods the world with cheap green goods, the West will put up trade barriers. That will delay the energy transition in the United States and EU. But the glut of EVs, solar panels and the like will speed it up in China and much of the Global South.

Elon Musk bets big on Tesla, not cars

5 Apr 2024

A move to ditch its cheap car, which Reuters reported, to focus on self-driving dashes shorter-term growth hopes at the $525 bln automaker. But boss Musk has scale with data which can help AI. With a tenuous EV crown, reinventing transportation is very Tesla and very risky.

Capital Calls: Green vehicles

3 Apr 2024

Concise views on global finance: French shipping and logistics heavyweight CMA CGM has acquired a 10% stake in Flexis, a joint venture set up by Volvo and Renault to develop electric vans in Europe.

Tesla exacerbates valuation range anxiety

2 Apr 2024

The Model 3 maker overtook China’s BYD again, but deliveries tumbled for the first time since 2020 despite being flattered by a temporary lack of cheaper options and US rivals selling dead tech. A sluggish EV market and boss Elon Musk’s bombast justify an even bigger discount.

Xiaomi enters China’s EV race in fine form

2 Apr 2024

The smartphone maker run by Lei Jun logged 90,000 orders in 24 hours for its debut vehicle and buyers face a seven-month wait. Investors cheered, adding 16% to the group's $48 bln market value. Competition is cutthroat but there's always room for strong upstarts.

BYD is unscathed in China’s electric-car wars

27 Mar 2024

The world’s largest EV maker founded and led by Wang Chuanfu is winning market share and accelerating its profit margins. That suggests the $86 bln company can keep cutting prices and investing overseas despite reporting its slowest quarterly profit growth in two years.