Trade News

Growth in auto-dimming mirror unit shipments and a strong mix of products with advanced features helped supplier Gentex Corp. post a 44 percent jump in fourth-quarter net income.

The company, which released its financial results Friday, also said it benefited from cost reductions implemented over the year.

The Zeeland, Mich., supplier of digital vision, connected car, dimmable glass and fire protection products posted net income of $143.3 million for the fourth quarter, a company quarterly record, compared with $99.5 million in the year-earlier period.

Net sales for the quarter also broke a company quarterly record with $529.9 million, a 19 percent increase from a year earlier. During the quarter, Gentex paid down the remaining $25 million balance of its short-term debt.

As one of the earlier suppliers to report quarterly results, Gentex is often viewed as a bellwether for global suppliers.

"When you combine this level of financial perform…

BMW's most powerful production vehicle will roar into U.S. stores in the second half of 2021.

The limited-production BMW M5 CS sedan starts at $142,995, including shipping. BMW declined to disclose how many units of the track-tuned car would be built but noted output is limited to the 2022 model year.

The new model is based on the 5 Series, a stalwart in BMW's sedan lineup. With 26,785 deliveries last year, the 5 Series was the second-bestselling BMW sedan in the U.S., after the 3 Series.

The M version received an update in August that features new front and rear styling and a larger 12.3-inch touch screen information display.

Adding a special edition series late in a model cycle generates marketing buzz for the 5-year-old 5 Series platform and could boost sales on a profitable nameplate.

The BMW M5 CS delivers extreme performance while offering some of the utility of a four-passenger car.

It is powered by a 4.4-liter M TwinPower …

Biden administration officials have called an ad-hoc meeting next week with Taiwan government and industry officials, during which they’re expected to pressure Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and its peers to ramp up the supply of vital chips to American automakers.

The virtual conference scheduled for Thursday would be the most high-profile meeting between newly appointed Biden administration officials and their counterparts from Taipei. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matt Murray and Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce Richard Steffens are scheduled to confer with Taiwan Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua, people familiar with the matter said. Executives from the island’s largest chipmakers including TSMC and MediaTek Inc. will also attend a discussion centered on resolving a global shortage of auto chips, they said.

The meeting is intended to forge closer ties between the two sides, the ministry said in a statement to Bloomberg N…

BOSTON --  A U.S. judge on Thursday rejected a last-ditch effort by two men to avoid being extradited to Japan to face charges they helped former Nissan Motor Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn flee the country.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston cleared the way for U.S. Army Special Forces veteran Michael Taylor and his son, Peter Taylor, to be handed over to Japan, after the U.S. State Department approved their extradition.

The Taylors' lawyers had argued they could not be prosecuted in Japan for helping someone "bail jump" and that, if extradited, they faced the prospect relentless interrogations and torture.

Ghosn in a court filing sought to support their claim, arguing he faced prolonged detention, mental torture and intimidation in Japan and the Taylors would face "similar or worse conditions."

But Talwani said that "although the prison conditions in Japan may be deplorable," that was not enough to bar extradition and th…

SEOUL/SAN FRANCISCO -- Executives at Hyundai Motor Group are divided over a potential tie-up with Apple, with some raising concerns about becoming a contract manufacturer for the U.S. tech giant, dimming the outlook for a deal.

Hyundai said earlier this month it was in preliminary talks with Apple but gave no details. Local media said the companies were discussing an electric car and battery tie-up.

Hyundai and Apple both declined to comment for this story.

Apple has never acknowledged talks with the automaker about building vehicles, and it was unclear whether any such talks are still active. The iPhone maker typically insists on strict secrecy from its potential partners and suppliers about future plans or unreleased products.

In an earnings call on Tuesday in which it reported its best quarterly profit in over three years, Hyundai did not give any updates on talks with Apple or indicate whether they remain active.

"We are agonizing over…

TOKYO -- Woven Planet, Toyota Motor Corp.'s high-tech spinoff, has established a $800 million investment fund to cherry pick up-and-coming technology companies around the world.

The fund, named Woven Capital, was outlined Jan. 29 in a kickoff event for the Woven Planet venture that included an overview of the new company's upcoming products and strategies. Among the announcements was the Feb. 23 groundbreaking for its Woven City town of tomorrow.

James Kuffner, the American CEO of Woven Capital and a director at Toyota Motor, outlined the company's ambitions in an online briefing from Woven's headquarters in downtown Tokyo.

The creation of Woven Planet was announced last year as a holding company to subsume the subsidiary that handles Toyota's automated driving development, Toyota Research Institute - Advanced Development, or TRI-AD.

The entity now oversees two new companies, Woven Core and Woven Alpha.

Woven Core focuses on automated driving.<…

LONDON -- Aston Martin has strengthened its board with the addition of ex-Ford Motor Co. global product chief Richard Parry-Jones and former McLaren CEO Antony Sheriff, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The company also appointed to the board Anne Stevens, a former Ford executive and ex-board member of British supplier GKN, and Daimler's Stephan Unger, who will represent Daimler after the German automaker said in October that it will increase its stake in Aston Martin to 20 percent.

The appointment of the high-profile auto executives adds "great value" to Aston Martin, chairman and largest shareholder Lawrence Stroll said in a statement.

"This is a very important time for the company as we start to execute our plans to enable Aston Martin to become one of the preeminent luxury car brands in the world," he said.

All the appointments are non-executive positions and are effective Feb. 1.

Richard Parry-Jones remains a key figure in the B…

DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. will idle two shifts at its Chicago Assembly Plant next week because of the ongoing microchip shortage.

A company spokeswoman late Thursday confirmed the move. Local UAW officials first warned workers there of the potential layoff on Wednesday.

The temporary reduction in shifts will affect Ford's production of the profitable Explorer, one of the company's top sellers, and Lincoln Aviator crossovers. The plant employs about 5,800 workers.

The automaker's Louisville Assembly Plant, where workers build the Escape and Corsair crossovers, is currently down because of the chip shortage.

The worldwide shortage of microchips has also shuttered Ford's plant in Saarlouis, Germany, and is affecting a number of automakers around the globe. IHS Markit forecasts that chip-related supply wrinkles will linger into the second quarter and possibly even the second half of the year.

DETROIT -- The head of the North American International Auto Show is eyeing September 2022 for resurrecting a Detroit auto show that's been sidelined by the coronavirus pandemic after being moved from its traditional January date on the international circuit.

Rod Alberts, executive director of the Detroit Auto Dealers Association and NAIAS, told the governing board of Detroit's TCF Center on Thursday that this year's show, originally planned for September, had to be canceled because of the financial risk of the virus upending another event like the June 2020 show that got canceled.

Alberts appeared before the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority board Thursday in a Zoom video conference call, addressing the five-member public body for the first time since NAIAS organizers pulled the plug on Detroit's auto show for the second year in a row.

"Our plan is to do something in Detroit next year. We want to do it in September," Alberts said. "... Fro…

Daimler said Thursday that a strong fourth quarter helped it post better-than-expected 2020 group operating profit and that it was optimistic for 2021.

Group earnings before interest and taxes for 2020 came to 6.6 billion euros ($8 billion), above consensus for 5.25 billion euros, the automaker said, citing preliminary figures.

"Given the development of successful cost discipline continued in the fourth quarter and expected good underlying demand, Daimler also anticipates a positive business development in 2021," the company said.

The Stuttgart-based maker of Mercedes-Benz cars and trucks said that the current shortages in semiconductors and the COVID-19 disruptions would probably impact the first quarter.

Daimler will release complete fourth-quarter figures and more detailed 2021 guidance on Feb. 18.

Matthews Auto Group has purchased five New York dealerships from the Fuccillo Automotive Group, gaining its first Hyundai location and growing its store count to 13.

Matthews, of Vestal, N.Y., and with stores in New York and Pennsylvania, said this week that it bought three dealerships in the Syracuse area and two in the Rochester area from Fuccillo. The acquisition involves two Kia dealerships, two Hyundai dealerships and a Nissan dealership.

Matthews, a family-owned dealership group dating to 1973, will add about 300 employees. The purchase price wasn't disclosed but included inventory, buildings, property and parts. The dealerships are being rebranded under the Matthews name.

"Fuccillo is an impressive operation with a great team who has sold tens of thousands of vehicles," Rob Matthews, president of the dealership group, said in a statement. "We jumped at this unique opportunity when it was presented to us. Although there is tremendous uncertainty o…