Trade News

ZISLOW, Germany -- Volkswagen's supervisory board will discuss on Friday whether to extend the contract of CEO Herbert Diess, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The meeting, at which the sources said the board could decide in favor of a two-year extension for Diess until 2025, is taking place only days ahead of Volkswagen's strategy day scheduled for July 13.

A fresh contract would come shortly after Diess' long-term opponent Bernd Osterloh stepped down as works council head and took a management position at Volkswagen's truck unit Traton.

Diess, whose current contract runs until April 2023, had asked for an early extension toward the end of last year to get more backing for his efforts to reform Europe's top carmaker, but ran into opposition from powerful labor leaders, including Osterloh.

No firm decision has been taken and there is no guarantee that the supervisory board will reach an agreement at its meeting on Friday, the peopl…

Group 1 Automotive Inc. is expected to report higher profits on solid new-vehicle sales in the second quarter, despite a shortage of new cars and trucks to sell.

The company provided preliminary data on the second quarter because the microchip-related supply disruption has "made it very difficult for the financial markets to grasp the impact on our business," CEO Earl Hesterberg said in a release Thursday.

Group 1 expects earnings per share for the quarter to range between $10.20 and $10.70. Group 1 reported $1.63 in diluted earnings per share in the pandemic-stricken second quarter of 2020 and $2.64 in the second quarter of 2019.

The company said its profits are being driven by strong vehicle margins in the U.S., a rebound in U.S. service business and recovery in the U.K., as well as cost controls.

Second-quarter parts and service gross profit is expected to be up 10 percent against the second quarter of 2019 – a more comparable period because th…

Mazda's North American unit is recalling 260,915 Mazda3 vehicles from the 2004-2007 model years because airbag deployment could cause the plastic emblem on the steering wheel module cover to shatter and send fragments flying.

According to documents filed with NHTSA, the fragments could strike occupants during airbag deployment, which increases the risk of injury.

Mazda estimates it will notify owners by mail Aug. 28. The automaker will have owners take vehicles to a Mazda dealership so the airbag module cover can be replaced with an improved part. Airbags and inflators won't be replaced.

Mazda says owners won't be charged for the service. The automaker also says customers "would not have been able to incur warrantable costs" related to fixing the defect, so it won't offer a reimbursement plan.

According to a safety recall report filed with NHTSA, replacement airbag module covers have logos that don't contain polyurethane, which is subject to deter…

Volvo Car Corp. has reached an agreement with its Chinese parent Zhejiang Geely Holding Group to establish a joint venture to take over its powertrain operations.

The deal will allow it to concentrate on developing a new range of EVs, Volvo said in statement Thursday.

In the coming month, it will merge all its powertrain operations -- including engine plants in Sweden and China -- into the new company, the Swedish automaker said.

The JV company, named Aurobay, will initially develop powertrains within the Volvo and Geely groups, but expects also to supply customers outside the group in the future.

"The new stand-alone business also has the ambition to supply customers outside of the Geely Holding Group, and aims to be a leading player in the supply of high-quality, low emission, cost-efficient powertrain solutions," the Volvo statement said.

Volvo is targeting half of its global sales volume to come from EVs in 2025, with the other half fro…

Carla Bailo, CEO of the Center for Automotive Research, discusses NHTSA's new order requiring companies to report crashes involving certain automated-driving technology.

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Three court-appointed experts determined that billionaire Robert Brockman is competent to stand trial in the largest tax-evasion case in U.S. history, despite his claims of dementia, prosecutors said in a court filing.

If the findings are confirmed by a judge in Houston, the 80-year-old former CEO of dealership management systems vendor Reynolds & Reynolds would be tried on charges that he evaded taxes on $2 billion in income and laundered money. Brockman’s lawyers say dementia has left him unable to aid in his defense.

Prosecutors disclosed the findings of the experts in response to a Brockman filing, which sought an eight-week extension to an Aug. 6 deadline for defense lawyers to file expert reports. Brockman’s lawyers said a geriatric psychiatrist advised that they need time for more medical examinations relating to his competency because of his “recent hospitalizations and current health condition.”

Brockman’s June 30 filing redacted sections,…

Automotive supplier Magna International is partnering with work force education provider InStride to launch a pilot program that will provide qualified employees access to undergraduate degree programs free of debt.

The initiative, Educational Pathways for Innovative Careers (EPIC), will be available for U.S.-based employees beginning this month.

The program will provide coursework that lets employees address the skills they'll need to keep up with continued advances in the auto industry. The goal is for employees to expand their knowledge and skills so that more advanced vehicles can be designed and built.

"The mobility industry is transforming rapidly and in need of ever-changing skill sets to meet new demands. As vehicles change, the way we design and build them will be drastically different, requiring employees to expand their knowledge in order to maintain our company's competitive advantage," Magna Chief Human Resources Office…

Renault CEO Luca de Meo said the effects of the global semiconductor shortage will be felt through next year, a warning that doesn’t bode well for a recovery in auto production.

Major suppliers have cautioned Renault that the shortage is "a structural thing that will be with us through 2022," de Meo said Wednesday on the sidelines of a French parliamentary hearing. "There will be tension in the system even if production capacity is improving," he said.

"We have managed in the first half, but of course we have lost volumes," de Meo said. What is frustrating for the industry is that visibility on supplies "changes every week," he said.

De Meo's comments indicate the supply crunch, which many automakers including Renault expected to peak during the second quarter, could continue to weigh on auto output for longer.

Daimler and Jaguar Land Rover this week said that sales will be further hit on chip supply shortfalls.

Jaguar Land Rover said deliv…

While subprime shares shrink in the auto-lending marketplace, new research from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago suggests the performance of these loans exceeded lender expectations because of steps taken by the government and auto lenders early in the coronavirus pandemic.

Many auto lenders set aside hefty reserves to insulate themselves from future losses, anticipating a jump in delinquencies and repossessions amid historic unemployment from mandatory stay-at-home orders during the crisis.

Yet those losses never materialized. According to a blog post on June 30, the Chicago Federal Reserve posits that subprime auto loan performance was assisted greatly by the extension of government assistance through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act; temporary moratoriums on vehicle repossession in many states; and proactive moves by auto lenders to extend forbearance programs. In short, the steps taken to protect vulnerable populati…

DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. on Wednesday said it will hire Steven Croley, a former U.S. federal lawyer and aide to former President Barack Obama, to become its chief policy officer and general counsel effective July 12.

John Mellen, Ford's current general counsel who postponed his retirement a year ago, will step down effective Sept. 1 following a transition period, the company said.

Croley, 55, will report to CEO Jim Farley and work closely with Jon Huntsman, a Ford board member who in April was named to the new senior advisory position of vice chairman, policy.

"Steve has deep leadership experience at the intersection of law and policy and will add strength to our terrific legal, government relations and sustainability teams," Farley said in a statement. "His background will be invaluable as we partner with governments and others to speed development of breakthrough products and services that help give more people the freedom to move and pursue their drea…