Electric Vehicles

China EV champs race to make leaner green machines

8 Nov 2023

Nio is ditching 10% of its staff. Rivals won’t be far behind. While electric-car startups in the People’s Republic have proven their tech can keep pace with Tesla, their losses have been rising, in part due to a persistent price war. That makes cutting costs the next big test.

Capital Calls: Pfizer pessimism

31 Oct 2023

Concise views on global finance: A glut of vaccines has gutted Pfizer’s valuation, leaving it lower than it was before the pandemic. That’s an over-reaction, even if its Covid-19 therapies prove worthless.

Capital Calls: McDonald’s resilience

30 Oct 2023

Concise views on global finance: The Golden Arches’ global same-store sales rose 9% thanks to both selective menu-price increases and smaller meals in different markets. It demonstrates the company’s ability to keep pace with disparate economies’ stretched consumers.

China deal offers Stellantis ingenious EV shortcut

26 Oct 2023

The $58 bln Jeep-owner is paying $1.6 bln for 20% of electric-car maker Leapmotor and the right to sell its autos abroad. Hitching up with the Chinese group’s affordable and advanced tech will help CEO Carlos Tavares accelerate his green goals, despite festering geopolitics.

GM earnings give its restive workers an inch

24 Oct 2023

The automaker’s strong third-quarter earnings have raised the stakes in a strike costing it $200 million a week. The union continues to push aggressively. But with Detroit’s gas guzzlers doing relatively well, a tough-but-survivable compromise seems possible.

Tesla downshifts out of ludicrous mode

19 Oct 2023

The electric-car maker is gasping to keep sales ahead of China’s BYD. Its US market share also dipped below half while gross profit slumped to 16% in the latest quarter as boss Elon Musk cut prices. Accelerating again depends on new car designs and cheap overseas manufacturing.

Tycoon’s lithium grab leaves investors hanging

16 Oct 2023

Billionaire Gina Rinehart has stifled Albemarle’s $4.2 bln bid for Liontown with deft use of Australia’s takeover rules. Now the minerals producer has to raise cash just as prices for the key battery material are falling. She needs to show why her spoiling tactics were worth it.

Capital Calls: Finnair

6 Oct 2023

Concise views on global finance: The state-backed airline is planning to raise 600 mln euros through a rights issue – almost as much as its current equity.

China’s EV makers would steer around EU roadblock

14 Sep 2023

A Brussels probe may mean hefty tariffs on battery-powered cars imported from the People’s Republic. BYD, Nio and peers could start making them in the bloc, which accounts for a quarter of global EV sales. Focusing on Asia and Latin America, though, would make more sense.

Tariffs unfit to solve EU’s Chinese EV puzzle

13 Sep 2023

Ursula von der Leyen’s new anti-dumping investigation could result in punitive duties on China-made electric vehicles. But penalties are a bad fix for the EU’s green push. The bloc still needs the People’s Republic to help it phase out car pollution – and to buy Europe’s exports.

China is bitter medicine for Europe’s EV pivot

12 Sep 2023

Ditching EU combustion engines by 2035 requires carmakers like VW to rapidly boost sales of battery rides. That’s a challenge when electric cars are pricier than gasoline ones. Competition from China will lift take-up and force Western players to become more efficient.

VinFast’s volatile stock has an easy, painful fix

30 Aug 2023

Vietnam’s nascent electric-car maker capped a flighty first fortnight on Nasdaq with a 44% fall on Tuesday. Blame its tiny sub-1% free float. Selling new shares would reduce trading swings and raise cash the $107 bln firm will soon need. It requires crashing its zippy valuation.

Volkswagen’s China shortcut will tempt rivals

23 Aug 2023

The $69 bln carmaker is investing in Xpeng and doubling down on cooperation with state-backed SAIC. As Toyota, Ford, BMW and their peers navigate increasingly tough competition in the Chinese market, VW’s plan to reboot its electric vehicles presents a timely but tricky roadmap.

Evergrande’s EV deal drives wishful thinking

16 Aug 2023

The embattled property group is giving up control of its stalled electric-car unit to help pay down debt. Its new partner, Dubai-based NWTN, hopes the purchase will charge up its own China strategy. But that seems overly optimistic in an increasingly cutthroat market.

Vietnam’s Tesla charges itself up for a big fall

16 Aug 2023

VinFast shares leapt 270% on their Nasdaq debut following the group’s $27 bln merger. A cosy shareholding structure boosted the valuation to 16 times its US rival but tycoon Pham Nhat Vuong’s EV maker has teething problems. Outsiders will be exacting when he needs to raise money.

CFOs are stepping into a rapidly revolving door

14 Aug 2023

From Alphabet to Tesla to Walgreens, finance chiefs are moving on at a faster rate than usual. One-tenth of the 1,000 largest US companies lost their CFO in the first half. Economic whiplash and expanded job duties are both factors. Higher turnover looks here to stay.

Toyota tops up tank to fuel a hard drive

2 Aug 2023

Rising sales helped net income surge ahead by 75% in Koji Sato’s first quarter behind the wheel of the $230 bln Japanese carmaker, pushing the stock to an all-time high. To keep up the pace, though, he has to speed electrification and outpace competition from China and beyond.

Capital Calls: Uber’s road trip to redemption

1 Aug 2023

Concise views on global finance: The $95 bln ride-sharing firm notched its first operating profit and more than doubled free cash flow, but its valuation is lagging.

Tesla’s new burden: shouldering the market

19 Jul 2023

The $920 bln automaker effectively jump-started the electric car market; now, it’s trying to sustain it, opening up its once-differentiating charging network and technology while driving down prices. That could grow the battery-powered pie but threatens Tesla’s share.

Britain upgrades to also-ran in EV battery race

19 Jul 2023

India’s Tata will spend $5 bln on a new gigafactory in England, helped by state subsidies. After Britishvolt’s demise, it suggests the UK can still lure green tech. But with more needed just to maintain its current auto output, Britain is still off the pace versus the EU and US.