Trade News

FRANKFURT -- Volkswagen Group and Microsoft are expanding their cooperation involving the U.S. software giant's cloud technology to include speeding up development of automated driving.

VW's new software division will build a cloud-based platform with Microsoft that will help simplify development processes and allow faster integration into its vehicle fleet, the automaker said Thursday in a statement.

The partnership will make it much easier to deploy software updates to add new features to cars, a practice that helped to set Tesla apart from many rivals.

The deal means that cars that are sold with a few driver-assistance features today could add new capabilities over time that bring them closer to autonomous driving, said Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of cloud and artificial intelligence at Microsoft.

"For our phones 15 or 20 years ago, when you bought it, it pretty much never changed. Now, we expected every week or every couple of day…

HANGZHOU, China -- Like many others in the auto industry, Geely Chairman Li Shifu has been irked by skyrocketing valuations for electric car manufacturers such as Tesla Inc. and Nio Inc., sources at the Chinese automaker say.

Getting Geely, which owns Volvo Cars and 9.7 percent of Daimler, to a place where it too may claim a sizeable chunk of China's burgeoning electric car market and burnish its share price at the same time, has preoccupied Li for much of the past year, they added.

The result: A flurry of tie-ups unveiled last month that lay bare Geely's intention to position itself as the go-to contract manufacturer for electric vehicles in China and beyond -- assembly services that will also offer up its engineering and development expertise.

"The chairman's attitude toward contract manufacturing is clear: He is embracing it and actively pursuing it," a Geely executive told Reuters.

Outsourcing production of some models through original equipme…

DETROIT — Ford Credit posted a $912 million profit in the fourth quarter, setting a record and serving as one of few bright spots as Ford Motor Co. reported a $2.8 billion quarterly loss.

The lender was among three business units, along with Ford's North America and Europe markets, to make money closing out the year. The profit, up about 45 percent from the same period a year ago, was the finance arm's best-ever fourth-quarter performance.

For the full year, Ford Credit earned $2.6 billion before taxes, down 13 percent from 2019, largely because of lower receivables and credit loss effects from the coronavirus pandemic.

Ford CFO John Lawler described the performance as "another strong quarter," noting Ford Credit was helped by improved auction values, which rose about 7 percent from the same period a year ago to $20,190 per vehicle. As expected, auction values were down slightly from the $21,125 posted last quarter.

T…

TOKYO -- Planning for the removal of Carlos Ghosn began as early as April 2018, well before the auto executive’s arrest on charges of financial crimes, according to court testimony by the Nissan Motor Co. insider who was instrumental in the downfall of the carmaker’s former chairman.

Hari Nada, a senior vice president at the automaker, was answering questions posed by the attorney representing Greg Kelly, the former Nissan director who was arrested on the same day as Ghosn in November 2018 and is currently standing trial.

“I thought Mr. Ghosn’s conduct within the company raised questions of criminality well before April 2018,” Nada said in the Tokyo District Court on Wednesday. “I was conscious of Mr. Ghosn’s behavior on a range of matters, and I was concerned of that over a number of years before 2018.”

Nada was responding to questions about a flowchart that he had asked internal and external lawyers to prepare, which was delivered to him at the end of …

Dealerships adjusting to a digital environment expect the changes to last, even though consumers still want to come into dealerships. Eventually.

For now, many customers remain wary of the coronavirus, and a study conducted by Lightico indicates that they'll be staying at home until a vaccine is widely available. Lightico is a software-as-a-service company that connects auto finance customers to lenders through a mobile portal.

A January survey of 1,129 American consumers found 86 percent of respondents were concerned about entering a dealership or going to a bank during the pandemic.

Vaccine access would make 39 percent of respondents likely to return to physical visits to a dealership, though nearly one-third said they would prefer completing as much of a vehicle purchase remotely as possible even after the pandemic abates.

Dealerships looking to enhance their digital retailing experience cannot forget the finance-and…

DETROIT — General Motors posted net income of $2.8 billion in the fourth quarter, including an adjusted $2.6 billion profit in North America.

The gain compares to a $194 million loss a year earlier as a result of the UAW strike.

The profit brings GM's full-year net income to $6.4 billion, down 4.5 percent from 2019, the automaker said Wednesday.

Global revenue in the fourth quarter rose 22 percent to $37.5 billion and adjusted earnings before interest and taxes rose to $3.7 billion from $105 million a year earlier.

GM earned $283 million from its international regions, compared to a $120 million loss a year earlier, and China equity income was $248 million, up from $239 million.

Earnings from GM Financial more than doubled to $1 billion.

A global shortage of microchips will reduce 2021 earnings by $1.5 billion to $2 billion before interest and taxes, GM said, but it won't affect growth and electric vehicle initiatives. GM plans to pr…

The Biden administration’s first test of its climate change policy could come this week in a legal dispute over battery components seen as key to growing electric vehicle adoption in the U.S.

The U.S. International Trade Commission is scheduled to decide Wednesday whether to ban imports of lithium-ion battery components that the South Korean battery maker SK Innovation will need to produce battery cells for the electric Ford F-150 and Volkswagen ID4 at a factory under construction in Georgia.

LG Chem, a supplier to such carmakers as General Motors and Tesla Inc., and a competitor of SK also based in South Korea, filed its claim in April 2019, alleging that SK’s batteries use stolen trade secrets.

If the commission sides with LG, the decision could upend battery output and hamper EV production in the U.S. A favorable ruling for LG could complicate the green energy agenda of President Joe Biden, who has pledged to promote EV adoption. One early example was…

DETROIT -- Penske Automotive Group Inc. plans to more than double revenue for its standalone used-vehicle supercenters' business over the next three years, as it adds more than 20 locations by the end of 2023.

The nation's second-largest new-vehicle retailer made the announcement Wednesday as it reported fourth-quarter net income nearly doubled to $201.4 million. Revenue slipped 1.2 percent to $5.81 billion.

"I am very pleased to report 97 percent earnings growth for the fourth quarter," Penske CEO Roger Penske said in a statement. "Our results were driven by same-store retail automotive margin expansion, growth in our commercial truck dealership profitability and continued strong performance from Penske Transportation Solutions."

Adjusted net income from continuing operations jumped 97 percent to $199.9 million. That figure excluded a $200,000 gain, which came from the sale of dealerships, offset by tax costs to repay certain debt early. Pens…

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WASHINGTON -- UAW President Rory Gamble held a virtual meeting last week with a top White House environmental official as the Biden administration moves to reverse the rollback in vehicle emissions rules adopted under then President Donald Trump.

A spokesman for the union confirmed Gamble met with White House domestic climate change adviser Gina McCarthy and other members of the Biden Administration.

"It was a very open and positive dialogue," Gamble said in a statement, praising the Biden administration's "commitment to regular dialogue with the UAW."

The Biden administration has started discussions with the automobile sector about reducing greenhouse gas emissions, McCarthy told Reuters last week.

McCarthy also spoke recently to General Motors CEO Mary Barra about the automaker's aspiration to halt sales of all gas- and diesel-powered vehicles by 2035, the automaker confirmed.

The White House is preparing to begin talks with automakers ab…

PARIS -- Valeo has received approval for 600 million euros ($727 million) in financing from the European Investment Bank for projects to reduce emissions and improve active safety, including 48-volt mild hybrid technology and autonomous driving.

The money will be paid out by 2022, starting with an initial 300 million euro loan, and go toward R&D projects in the Czech Republic, France, Germany and Ireland. 

Valeo CEO Jacques Aschenbroich called the financing “extremely important.”

"It will enable us to continue our research efforts and strengthen our technological leadership in the key areas of reducing CO2 emissions and improving road safety,” he said in a news release on Wednesday. 

Other projects that will benefit from the financing include battery cooling, cabin climate control, advanced driving assistance, and "smart" lighting and wipers. Valeo said it planned to spend a total of 1.4 billion euros on these projects in the next fo…

Growing Lithia Motors Inc. has purchased another two dealerships, this time expanding its footprint in Florida, and it opened an Infiniti store across the country in Los Angeles.

The nation's third-largest new-vehicle dealership group on Feb. 1 purchased Land Rover Orlando and Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram of Sanford from Fields Auto Group of Glencoe, Ill.

Terms weren't disclosed, but Lithia said Tuesday that it paid for the stores using capital raised last year. The dealership group said the two stores are expected to add $200 million in revenue annually. Lithia said its previously awarded Infiniti point in Los Angeles is expected to add $40 million in annualized revenue.

Lithia entered Florida in fall 2019 when it acquired three stores in the Tampa market from Williams Automotive Group. The retailer said the most recent acquisitions will help build density in southeast states.

"We are excited to welcome the high-performing Fields Auto Group to the Li…