+++ BYD is considering the possibility of building an assembly plant in Peru, the local news agency Andina reports with a link to Peruvian Minister of Foreign Affairs Javier González-Olaechea. The establishment of the BYD manufacturing facility will leverage the China-Peru strategic collaboration around Chancay Harbor. The friendship between China and Peru accelerated as Peruvian president Dina Ercilia visited China in June. She also made an appointment with BYD and Huawei during her visit. The key factor of the Peru-China cooperation is the establishment of free trade agreements. These countries also run the Chancay Port project, with China-owned Cosco Shipping Ports company holding 60% of the stake. This port will become “the gateway from South America to Asia” when finished. First, the establishment of the BYD facility was mentioned as a possible option after Ercilia visited Shenzhen on June 26. Shenzhen is the motherland of BYD and Huawei. 2 weeks later, the cooperation with BYD made headlines once again as this topic was highlighted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Javier González-Olaechea. He mentioned that Shenzhen is the most important digital technology center in China. He said that the visit to BYD and Huawei HQ was impressive. The Peruvian Minister also mentioned that BYD expressed the possibility of setting up an assembly plant in Peru, as well as in 2 other Latin American countries. “On this matter, there was nothing but good reception, very promising statements, some very specific regarding the fact that next steps would be taken in relation to increasing investments that already exist or from companies that will begin their prospecting activities to evaluate and, surely, commit more investments in Peru”. Previously, BYD explored the establishment of EV factories in Mexico and Brazil. These 2 countries also build a productive relationship with China. In May 2024, BYD began construction of a manufacturing complex in Brazil. It will start operating in early 2025 with a production capacity of 150.000 cars early. In June 2024, Mexico officials said the negotiations around the BYD manufacturing plant are in the final stages. The establishment of an assembly plant in Peru is a possible option since it shares a border with Brazil. However, 2 manufacturing facilities can help BYD to boost its development in the market. On the other hand, the Peruvian Minister didn’t confirm that BYD wants to establish a passenger car manufacturing facility in Peru. Therefore, BYD has many options: buses, batteries, trains, and car components. +++
+++ The European Union will impose additional provisional duties of up to 38 percent on electric cars from CHINA after concluding manufacturers in this Asian country China benefited from unfair state support. Here’s why the Chinese electric vehicle market has raised hackles among European policymakers, and what impact the move could have: China’s EV sector was able to get so strong because president Xi Jinping has spearheaded a targeted industrial strategy to boost its EV sector, pouring vast state funds into domestic firms as well as research and development. Between 2014 and the end of 2022, the Chinese government said it had spent more than 200 billion yuan ($28 billion) on subsidies and tax breaks for EV purchases alone. The approach has given Chinese firms a critical edge in the race to provide cheaper, more efficient EVs over leading European automakers, which have not always enjoyed such state largesse. They have also been boosted by surging domestic demand: Of all new EVs sold globally in December last year, 69 percent were in China. Exports are soaring. According to the Atlantic Council, Chinese sales of EVs abroad rose 70 percent in 2023, reaching $34.1 billion. Almost 40 percent went to the European Union, the largest recipient of Chinese EVs. The EU market share of Chinese-made EVs climbed from around 3 percent to more than 20 percent in the past 3 years, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association. The overwhelming market leader from China is BYD, which this year posted record annual profits for 2023 and says it aims to be among the top-5 car companies in Europe. Last year, it became the first manufacturer to pass the 5 million milestone in terms of hybrids and all-electric vehicles produced cumulatively, crowning itself as “the world’s leading manufacturer of new energy vehicles”. Among the other top Chinese EV makers exporting to Europe are SAIC (MG Motor) and Polestar (owned by Volvo and its Chinese parent firm Geely). The European Union is worried because the surge in exports has allowed Chinese firms to rapidly increase their share of the EU market for EVs. The EU has now concluded that Chinese manufacturers benefited from unfair subsidisation, which is causing a threat of economic injury to European automakers. But there is also dissent within the EU. Germany, a major trade partner whose car market is heavily reliant on China, warned tariffs would harm German companies. The EU will now impose provisional duties between 20 and 38 percent on top of the current 10 percent tariff on Chinese electric cars. Definitive duties will take effect in November for a period of 5 years, pending a vote by the EU’s 27 states. Beijing has yet to react but a Chinese trade group condemned the bloc’s “protectionism”. China has already bared its teeth however, kickstarting an anti-dumping investigation into pork imports from the EU, threatening Spanish exports. In January, China launched an anti-dumping investigation into brandy imported from the EU, in a move seen as targeting France, which had pushed for the commission’s probe. Beijing said in June it “reserves the right” to file a case with the World Trade Organization over the EU tariffs. Since the EU’s move will impact all Chinese-made electric cars, Tesla’s Model 3, the electric Mini, and the Volvo EX40 are also among the vehicles that will face higher duties. A Tesla spokesperson said prices for the Model 3 (the number-3 in electric car sales in Europe) should increase “in the short term”. China’s electric car makers Nio and XPeng told they had no plans to quit the European market after the announcement. Meanwhile, MG France said it already imported 2.600 electric vehicles from China that have cleared customs. Germany’s Kiel Institute for the World Economy, alongside Austrian institutes, predicted the higher taxes will reduce vehicle imports from China by 42 percent. Electric car prices could rise by an average of 0.3 to 0.9 percent in the EU, they added. Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, said costs for Chinese exporters of EVs and EU consumers would increase, and the duties would also hit the bloc’s energy conservation and green development goals. +++
+++ GENESIS showcased its much-touted GV60 Magma concept vehicle at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed in the United Kingdom, signalling that production of the high-performance car will soon begin ahead of sales next year, the luxury carmaker said Thursday. This track-inspired take on the high-riding hatchback is part of the automaker’s strong willingness to enhance its corporate identity as a manufacturer of vehicles with powerful performance. In March, Genesis unveiled 2 higher-end electric concept models: the Neolun SUV and the GV60 Magma. The latest event in the European country aims to reaffirm its intention to start production of the vehicle soon. Sales for the luxury vehicle will commence in Korea in the third quarter of 2025. The GV60 Magma will also be available to European customers sometime in the 4th quarter, according to Genesis. “We are thrilled to present the global dynamic debut of the GV60 Magma concept vehicle at the 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed”, Genesis chief creative officer Luc Donckerwolke said. “The festival’s storied legacy and enthusiastic audience provide an ideal platform to showcase the capabilities of our new Magma program and highlight our strong commitment to high performance”. The GV60 Magma concept model elevates the design and performance of the existing Genesis GV60; the first dedicated EV model under the Genesis brand. Key features of the GV60 Magma include improved battery and motor technology, along with meticulous attention to detail in areas such as the chassis, aerodynamics and thermodynamics, according to Genesis. The vehicle has been widened and lowered as part of the carmaker’s efforts to enhance its stability. The lower center of gravity allows drivers to enjoy more dynamic driving experiences. Genesis has participated in Goodwood for four consecutive years, captivating audiences at the country’s biggest automotive festival with its new vehicle launches there. +++
+++ HYUNDAI saw its sales hit a record in India in the first half of this year, according to industry data, as it has filed for an initial public offering for its India unit. According to data from the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations of India (FADA), Hyundai sold 272.207 units in India from January to June this year, up 2 percent compared to the 266,760 units sold in the same period in 2023. The tally marks the largest first-half sales figure for Hyundai in the country. Investor relations data also showed that Hyundai’s Indian plant sold a total of 259.659 units locally from January to May. According to the FADA, Hyundai’s market share in the Indian passenger vehicle market for the first half stood at 13.8 percent, ranking second behind Maruti Suzuki. Tata Motors ranked third, followed by Toyota and Kia. Hyundai has shown a constant share decrease in India in the past few years, from 17 percent in 2021 to 14.1 percent to 2023. Last month, the company announced that its Indian unit has filed for an initial public offering in the country, as it seeks to gain a strong foothold in the country’s fast-growing auto market. Industry observers are keen on whether the company can enhance its local competitiveness through the listing on the Indian stock market. India serves as a key global production base for the Korean automotive giant. Last year, Hyundai produced a total of 765.000 vehicles in India. +++
+++ Manufacturers need to get permission to sell each new car in China with a government regulator. Once a month a list of cars approved for sale is published and this comes with important information such as key specifications and pictures. Not surprisingly manufacturers are not very happy with this, but usually considerable information has already reached the public by this time anyway. Sometimes, however, there is a complete surprise and this month that car is the MG S5. A compact all-electric SUV the S5 seems to have taken people by surprise. At the front, the MG S5 has a classic X shape with slender headlights and lower air intake. There is a split grille design at the bottom similar to that of the MG Cyberster. A wave-like line starts on the front wing and makes its way along to the rear of the car. At the rear, there is a through-type tail light and a generally clean look. The car is available with both 17 and 18-inch wheels. The MG S5 has dimensions of 4.476 x 1.849 x 1.621 mm and the wheelbase is 2.730 mm. There are 2 separate Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) listings. Both show the same rear axle mounted 125 kW electric motor powering the car, and sourced from United Automotive Electronics. Top speed is 170 km/h. Different weights are given with presumably 1.615 kg being the base spec version, and the other listing displaying weights of both 1.685 and 1.740 kg. With the higher spec version, the difference between the 2 given weights may indicate 2 different-sized battery capacities. All cars use lithium iron phosphate batteries which are assembled by SAIC’s Venture with CATL. Options include a panoramic roof along with various wheel and mirror options. SAIC owned MG is this year celebrating its centenary. The MG S5 is likely produced on the same platform as the MG 4; previous reports indicated the platform would be used for a series of electric vehicles. Also, this is the first time MG have used a name beginning with S within China. Earlier this year MG applied the S9 name on a rebadged Rising R7 displayed in Geneva for the European market. It is highly likely that the MG S5 will be exported and replace the MG 5 electric estate car in the European line-up. +++
+++ Tesla is postponing its planned robotaxi unveiling to October to allow teams working on the project more time to build additional prototypes, a blow that halted a breathless stock rally. Elon MUSK ’s far-right politics and the corporate culture at his companies is causing him more problems. A sexual harassment suit filed at SpaceX alleges that men at the company subjected women to crude jokes that echoed Musk’s tweets. Then, SpaceX suffered a rare failure of its Falcon 9 rocket in space, marking the first major in-flight mishap in hundreds of launches. As for Tesla, distaste for the billionaire has some EV buyers finding a Tesla alternative: Rivian, which is banking partly on anti-Musk sentiment. +++
+++ In SOUTH KOREA , sales of overseas luxury carmakers plummeted for the first half of this year amid freezing customer sentiment triggered by prolonged high interest rates and economic doldrums, according to data and company officials. According to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association, only a few foreign carmakers (Tesla, Toyota and Honda) reported rises in their sales here. Bentley was hit hardest by a sales decline of 63.7 percent in the first half of 2024 from a year earlier. Porsche and Land Rover also reported sales falls of 42.8 percent and 33.5 percent respectively during the same period. Audi also extended its losing streak, with its sales dropping by 62.6 percent. Officials from the car industry here attributed their sales falls to customers’ growing preference for price-competitive hybrid cars. “Amid the high interest rate that has persisted for years, customers have felt a sense of growing financial burden in purchasing typical luxury cars”, an official from a carmaker said. “Japanese car brands and Tesla, however, seem to have widened their presence thanks to their strategy to focus on hybrid and electric vehicles (EV)”. Toyota sold a total of 4.535 cars for the first 6 months combined; up 14 percent from a year earlier. Honda attained much bigger sales growth of 116.6 percent during the same period. Tesla’s rise was also noteworthy. The American EV maker’s Model Y and Model 3 placed their names on the nation’s best-selling and second-best-selling overseas vehicles in the first half. Tesla sold around 17.300 cars between January and June in Korea, and was ranked as the country’s third-most-popular imported car brand following BMW and Mercedes-Benz. “The growing popularity of Tesla EVs particularly from the young generation poses a threat to the presence of BMW’s 520 mid-sized sedans and Mercedes’ E-Class line-up”, the official said. Most other foreign carmakers also ended up losing ground here for similar reasons. Sales for Volvo vehicles plunged by 15.1 percent during the period, data from the association showed. Lexus also suffered a slight sales decline of 7.6 percent. The company defended relatively well against the unfavourable market sentiment, as most of its vehicle line-up is hybrid cars. BMW maintained its leadership in terms of car sales here. It sold more than 35,000 cars in the first half, accounting for a 28 percent market share in imported cars. But this is still a drop of 7.8 percent from the previous year. Mercedes-Benz came in second with sales of over 30,000 during the same period, a fall of 15.3 percent from a year earlier. +++
+++ TOYOTA says it’s investing in Ionna, teaming with seven other automakers to support the company’s implementation of its charging network for battery electric vehicles across North America. The investment gives Toyota and Lexus customers access to the public network of DC fast chargers Ionna will start deploying later this year. Toyota currently has 2 mass-market battery EVs in the U.S. and Canada. They are the Toyota BZ4X and the Lexus RZ. The company is looking to offer 30 battery EV models worldwide across its Toyota and Lexus brands and make up to 3.5 million battery EVs annually by 2030. Ionna, based in Durham, North Carolina, plans to install at least 30.000 charge ports in North America by 2030. Stations will include both CCS and NACS connectors to support all battery EV drivers. The majority of electric vehicles currently have one of two types of plug styles to connect to public fast-charging stations. The first is called the Combined Charging System, or CCS, and the second is the North American Charging Standard, or NACS, used by all Tesla vehicles. The White House is lending its support to an auto industry effort to standardize Tesla’s electric vehicle charging plugs for all EVs in the United States, part of a broad effort to stimulate their sales to help combat climate change. Other automakers supporting Ionna include BMW, GM, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis. +++