Trade News

New-vehicle wholesale shipments industrywide contracted 8.4 percent to 2.56 million in December as China lifted pandemic-triggered lockdowns, sparking a wave of COVID-19 infections that undermined retail activity and production. 

For 2022, vehicle shipments rose 2.1 percent to approach 26.9 million behind demand for electrified vehicles and tax incentives for gasoline cars, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said Thursday.

In December, combined shipments of sedans, crossovers, SUVs, multi-purpose vehicles and minibuses dropped 6.7 percent to less than 2.27 million. 

But the full-year light-vehicle deliveries jumped 9.5 percent to 23.5 million.

December demand for new commercial vehicles such as buses and trucks slipped 20 percent to around 291,000, with full-year volume tumbling 31 percent to roughly 3.3 million. 

Electrified vehiclesDemand for new electrified vehicle surged 52 percent to approach 814,000 in De…

Electric vehicles built in U.S. factories are dominating the domestic EV market, according to new-vehicle registration data from Experian, and the trend is likely to accelerate, given new tax incentives for EV and battery production in North America.

U.S.-made EVs accounted for about 75 percent of new-vehicle registrations in the first 11 months of last year, Experian data shows, and U.S.-based automakers were responsible for nearly all of the local production. The biggest exception was Nissan, with its Tennessee-built Leaf holding a 1.7 percent EV market share.

The manufacturing trend, driven by Tesla, General Motors and EV startups such as Rivian, is good news for U.S. manufacturers and supply chains as the global auto market goes electric over the coming decade, analysts say. The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law last year, ended the $7,500 EV credit for vehicles made outside of North America.

International automakers are now accelerating plan…

Tata Group aims to accelerate Jaguar Land Rover's shift to electric cars by setting up battery cell manufacturing operations in Europe.

JLR and Tata Motors will be the anchor customers for the facility, which will also sell battery cells to the wider market, said Tata Motors Chief Financial Officer, P.B. Balaji.

“We are well covered on the production plans for batteries, but we will require some cell capacity coming into Europe,” Balaji said at the India Auto Expo taking place this week on the outskirts of New Delhi.

Tata is finalizing plans and will announce details soon, he said, declining to disclose the location of the facility and a time frame. There will be a “lot of investments,” Balaji said, without elaborating.

The “intellectual property-heavy” facility will produce two cell chemistries — lithium iron phosphate for Tata Motors’ EVs and nickel manganese cobalt for the Indian automaker as well as JLR, Balaji said.

The plan should hel…

Chinese carmaker BYD Co. is planning a bold push into India’s electric vehicle market, joining a rush of foreign carmakers jockeying for a bigger share of the world’s fourth-biggest auto market.   

The Warren Buffett-backed BYD is seeking to capture 40 percent of India’s EV market by 2030, Sanjay Gopalakrishnan, senior vice president of its local unit, said in an interview at India Auto Expo 2023 on the outskirts of New Delhi.

“Being a global manufacturer, we have to keep aggressive goals,” Gopalakrishnan said. India is a good bet because “people are realizing the need for EVs and the charging infrastructure is picking up.”

India’s switch to electric vehicles is lagging behind other countries such as China and the U.S., hampered by high upfront costs and a lack of charging infrastructure. Still, that hasn’t deterred foreign automakers showcasing EVs at this week’s auto show as they vie for a slice of the potentially lucrative market.

MG…

OTTAWA - Canada and Mexico have won their challenge to the U.S. interpretation of content rules for autos under the new North American trade pact, a dispute panel ruled on Wednesday, a decision that favors parts makers north and south of the U.S. border.

A year ago Canada and Mexico filed a complaint against the United States over how to apply automotive-sector content requirements under the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) free trade agreement, which came into effect in 2020.

The U.S. interpretation of the rules is "inconsistent" with the USMCA, the panel said in its ruling.

"The decision is good for Canada and Mexico," said Flavio Volpe, president of Canada's Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association.

Canada "is glad to see that the dispute settlement mechanisms in place are supporting our rights and obligations negotiated in USMCA," Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng said in a statement.

"This is excellent news," said Tatiana Clouthier…

Crain Volkswagen of Fayetteville in Arkansas has filed a lawsuit against Volkswagen Group of America, alleging that the licensing of a nearby VW dealership violates its franchise agreement and infringes on Crain VW's retail territory.

The suit was filed in the circuit court of Pulaski, Ark., in December and named VW of America as the defendant. Crain VW claims to have the right, under its franchise agreement with VW of America and state law, to solely serve Washington and Benton counties in northwest Arkansas.

The licensing of Everett Volkswagen in Rogers, Ark., which is 20 miles away, encroaches upon its territory and violates the "good faith" agreement to "act in a fair and equitable manner toward each other" established by a franchise contract, the lawsuit alleges.

Click here for a map of the dealership locations.

The suit also alleges that VW of America has been unable to achieve "the industry standard of 600,000 units per year to support its…

Electric vehicle share of U.S. light-vehicle sales has reached the "hockey stick" moment analysts have been forecasting for decades, but there are hurdles to clear before the industry achieves significant EV scale, said Kristin Dziczek of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago at the organization's 29th annual automotive insights symposium on Wednesday.

EV share of new-vehicle sales has climbed to about 6 percent, despite the pandemic and supply chain challenges. And investments from automakers and policymakers, along with incentives from the Inflation Reduction Act could be levers to boost EV sales, said Dziczek, a policy adviser in the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago's Research, Policy and Public Engagement division.

The Inflation Reduction Act "gives us a lot of incentives… they are quite substantial, and really could move the needle on EV production battery component and mineral supply chain and adoption, as well as many state incentives to anchor these invest…

A Carvana Co. outlet in Michigan agreed to surrender its dealer license in lieu of further administrative action by state regulators, who in October suspended that license over titling, registration and odometer issues they found to be in violation of the Michigan Vehicle Code.

Carvana agreed Tuesday that the location in question — in Novi, a Detroit suburb — would have its dealer license revoked, according to a closeout agreement document provided Wednesday by the Michigan Department of State. The document was signed by a representative for Jocelyn Benson, Michigan's secretary of state, and by Paul Breaux, Carvana's general counsel.

"In a plea deal signed with our department, the Carvana dealership in Novi agreed it had violated the law and to have its dealer license revoked and be barred from reapplying for a new license for three years," Department of State spokesman Jake Rollow wrote in a statement provided to Automotive News.

Michigan residents may…

A look at the winners of the 2023 North American Car, Truck, and Utility Vehicle of the Year (NACTOY) awards. Ford’s top labor negotiator is retiring ahead of UAW contract talks. Plus, a deeper look at the Biden Administration’s new blueprint to decarbonize the transportation sector.

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An American automaker wears the U.S. luxury sales crown for the first time in nearly a quarter century.

After being bested by just 23,244 vehicles in 2021, Tesla grabbed the luxury sales throne from BMW — thumping the German automaker with a 158,612-vehicle lead last year, according to Automotive News Research & Data Center estimates. Austin-based Tesla does not break out sales by region or country. Mercedes-Benz placed third, followed by Lexus, Audi and Cadillac. Tesla delivered an estimated 491,000 vehicles in the U.S. last year, up 44 percent, and crossed 1 million deliveries globally.

It's been a swift rise for Tesla from nearly-bankrupt startup to sales juggernaut in a little over a decade.

The paradigm has shifted with electric vehicle sales dominating the luxury segment, said Tyson Jominy, vice president of data and analytics at J.D. Power.

"Not only do luxury buyers want EVs, but the one that only sells EV is now the sales leader," J…

Tesla Inc. has applied for construction permits to move ahead with more than $700 million in investments on the Austin, Texas, campus of its newest manufacturing plant.

The funds are earmarked for a “ground up and complete interior finish out of the EV manufacturing facility,” with construction starting later this month and ending early next year, according to filings dated Monday with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

It’s unclear how much of that investment is included in the more than $1 billion Tesla has said it planned to spend on the plant.

Tesla didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment. The investment was reported earlier by the Austin Business Journal.

The EV market leader started production at the factory last year and currently makes its battery-powered Model Y passenger vehicle at the plant. Tesla relocated its headquarters to Austin from Palo Alto, Calif., in late 2021.