Trade News

BMW will make workforce cuts in the U.S. to adjust for a business slowdown in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

A spokesman declined to disclose the number of jobs being axed, but noted it does not affect the automaker's large assembly plant in Spartanburg, S.C.

"The effects of COVID-19 are far-reaching," BMW of North America CEO Bernhard Kuhnt said in a letter to dealers, obtained by Automotive News. "Given the reduced size of the business, we now need to … re-scale our business across the company accordingly."'

BMW sales in the first half of the year tumbled 28 percent, with second quarter sales down nearly 40 percent from a year earlier, as many dealerships were forced into a COVID-19 lockdown in the spring.

In addition to workforce cuts, Kuhnt said, BMW said it will take "additional steps to adapt to the current situation."

"This is an incredibly tough decision — that many of you have also had to make — and this will require change …

DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. is ceasing production of ventilators and returning the Michigan factory where they were built to full-time parts output after completing delivery of 50,000 breathing machines to the U.S. government.

The automaker, which had been producing the devices in conjunction with General Electric Co., shipped its final unit Aug. 28 to help fight the coronavirus pandemic, according to Rachel McCleery, a company spokeswoman.

Ford’s Rawsonville Road plant already resumed auto-parts production in May as part of an industry-wide restart following a shutdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus. The ventilators were made in a separate part of the plant that didn’t affect output of auto components, including transmission oil pumps, electric battery packs and fuel pumps.

The company has said its factories returned to 95 percent of pre-virus production by the end of the second quarter after shutting down its U.S. plants in the spring in a bid …

Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda R&D Co. said they have joined forces in Japan to create a mobile power generation system that will supply power during natural disasters.

The system is called Moving e. The hydrogen-powered bus will carry hydrogen, portable external power output devices and portable batteries, Toyota and Honda said in a statement Monday that coincided with Japan's Disaster Prevention Day.

The automakers said they plan demonstration testing of the system, so it can be delivered "anytime and anywhere."

It was not clear if or when the system would become available in North America.

Moving e is a combination of Toyota's charging station fuel cell bus and Honda's Power Exporter 9000. It has two types of Honda's portable batteries and Honda's Mobile Power Pack Charge and Supply Concept.

"The Charging Station loaded with all equipment will be driven to the place and the Moving e will supply electricity in actual locations," a state…

High-flying shares of Tesla Inc. surged again on Monday after its stock split took effect and attracted more buying from investors.

Tesla shares rallied another 10 percent, elevating the EV market capitalization to over $440 billion, making it more valuable than blue-chip companies such as Walmart and Johnson & Johnson.

Tesla split its stock 5-for-1, joining Apple's 4-for-1 split on Monday, with both companies saying they aimed to make their shares more affordable to individual investors. Apple and Tesla's share splits applied to shareholders of record on Aug. 24.

Robinhood and other brokerages increasingly let customers buy fractions of individual shares, making the benefit of stock splits less obvious than in the past. Splits have become less common. Just three S&P 500 members announced splits in 2020, down from 12 in 2011, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices.

The success of the splits for Apple and Tesla could lead CEOs of other comp…

CLEVELAND -- Carvana Co., an online platform for buying and selling used cars, expects to create 400 full-time positions near Cleveland at a new inspection, reconditioning and distribution facility that has been approved for a state tax credit.

The Ohio Tax Credit Authority on Monday approved an eight-year, 1.4 percent tax credit to Tempe, Ariz.-based Carvana for a project that the state said would create $13.3 million in new annual payroll. As part of the tax credit agreement, the authority requires the company to maintain operations at the project location for at least 11 years. The authority said in a project overview that Carvana's fixed asset investment would go toward "building and land costs, along with new machinery and equipment."

An authority spokeswoman wrote in an email that the estimated value of the tax credit for Carvana is $1.345 million. The actual value of the tax credit is based on jobs created and new payroll tax generated, as verified by th…

Shiloh Industries Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and will be part of a stalking horse agreement auction and sale process.

Shiloh, primarily a supplier of lightweighting, noise and vibration products, has entered into a stock-and-asset purchase agreement with Grouper Holdings, a subsidiary of private equity firm MiddleGround Capital, the supplier said Sunday in a statement.

A stalking horse agreement sets the minimum acceptable bid for a sale of a bankrupt company and is arranged in advance of an auction in an attempt to maximize the value of its assets.

Through the agreement, Grouper is acquiring all of Shiloh's assets. This includes the equity interests of Shiloh's direct and indirect subsidiaries for a total consideration of $218 million in cash.

The Ohio-based supplier has also received a commitment of $123.5 million in debtor-in-possession financing from existing lenders, consisting of $23.5 million new money subfacility and a roll-u…

Nio Inc. boosted the size of its capital raising by almost 20 percent as investors rush stock sales by EV makers.

The U.S.-listed, Shanghai-based firm sold 88.5 million American depositary receipts at $17 apiece, according to an emailed statement Monday. It initially planned to sell only 75 million shares.

The some $1.5 billion raised in Nio’s latest offer will be partly used to increase the company’s interest in Nio China. Funds will also be spent on R&D into autonomous driving technologies as well as other general corporate purposes.

Investors are showing an increased interest in clean-energy car companies. Stock in Tesla Inc. has surged this year, making founder Elon Musk a centibillionaire with a net worth of $104 billion. Li Auto Inc., another Chinese EV maker, raised $1.1 billion in late July while XPeng Inc. had a stellar debut last week.

Nio’s once-shaky financial position is looking stronger. Earlier this year, it got a $1 billion inv…

TOKYO -- Mitsubishi Motors' former Chairman, Osamu Masuko, died from "cardiac insufficiency" on Aug. 27, the Japanese automaker said in a statement on Monday. He was 71.

Masuko, a veteran of the Mitsubishi conglomerate, had just weeks after he resigned as chairman, citing health reasons for his decision to step down.

Masuko joined Mitsubishi Motors in 2004 and became president in 2007. He oversaw the creation of the partnership between Mitsubishi and Nissan.

Mitsubishi Motors said he died on Aug. 27.

"He built solid relationships with the management of partners, the Alliance companies and the Mitsubishi Group through good communications by leveraging his personality and extensive connections," the company said.

The former chairman's death comes as the alliance between Mitsubishi, Nissan and French automaker Renault SA struggles to regain profitability in the aftermath of the ouster of former alliance chairman Carlos Ghosn.

Masuko was…

<!--*/ */ /*-->*/ Tell us what you think

Automotive News is trying something new with our subscribers in mind. We'd like to know what's on your mind. Please email us with your feedback on The Intersection. What would you like to see, or see improved? We can only get better with your help.

New jobs, new chances to make a mark

In 2007, on his first day at Hyundai, marketing boss Joel Ewanick fired the ad agency that had previously employed him.

Last year, on his first day as Daimler CEO, Ola Källenius laid out a 20-year vision for building a carbon-free — and profitable — business.

This first week of September will mark a number of chances for executives to make strong opening moves in new positions. Among them:

The ever-optimistic Jack Hollis takes over as Toyota's senior vice president of automotive operations on Tuesday. He succeeds Bill Fay, who is retiring after 38 years at the automaker.

In Monday's issue of Automo…

The venture capital firm’s managing director discusses ground transportation opportunities, SPAC ‘mania,’ ‘Zoom dating’ and lessons learned from the rise of Lyft and the fall of Better Place.

How do I subscribe?

Apple Podcasts: “Shift: A podcast about mobility” is available on the iTunes Store and through the ‘Podcast’ app pre-installed on all iOS devices. Click here to subscribe.

Spotify: "Shift: A podcast about mobility" can be streamed through Spotify on your desktop, tablet or mobile device. Click here to subscribe.

Google Play: "Shift: A podcast about mobility" is available on Android devices through the Google Play store. Click here to subscribe.