This report helps automotive suppliers inform their legal and operational decisions to help address challenges and opportunities. Contact your Foley relationship partner, or John R. Trentacosta or Ann Marie Uetz, to follow up.
Key Developments
- A Supplier Alert from Foley & Lardner shared key points involving the decision by Stellantis to rescind unpopular new purchase order terms and conditions.
- LMC Automotive estimates U.S. new
light-vehicle sales reached 4.55 million
units in the first four months of
2022, representing a decline of 16% from the same period
in 2021, but up by 8% from 2020.
- The semiconductor shortage has
resulted in the loss of nearly
1.7 million units of global production this year,
according to AutoForecast Solutions quoted in The Detroit
News.
- Toyota indicated high raw
material costs and ongoing semiconductor
shortages could reduce its next full-year profit by
roughly 20%, while noting ongoing economic uncertainty made it
difficult to provide a forecast.
- Crain's
Detroit (subscription) reports recent earnings
results from several major automotive
suppliers reflect the continued impact
from inflation and production
volatility.
- U.S. heavy-duty truck and trailer orders were
down by double digits in April, resulting from manufacturers
maintaining tight control over orders amid parts shortages and
supply chain uncertainty.
- Ford, GM
and Stellantis plan to reinstate mask
mandates at facilities
in Michigan counties with high risk for
COVID-19 transmission.
- According to a recent blog post by Foley &
Lardner, Mexico's antitrust commission
("COFECE") has recently fined "companies in the auto
parts industry more than 9 million Mexican pesos for failing to
notify two concentrations on time."
- Bloomberg reports
GM will raise wages by 8.5% at its truck plant in
Silao, Guanajuato as part of a new labor agreement with union
SINTTIA.
- Electric vehicles and low emissions
technology:
-
- The CEOs of automakers including Stellantis, Tesla and Volvo have
warned component
shortages and higher raw material
prices could present significant risk to
EV supply chains.
- The U.S. Department of Energy announced a $45
million program to support domestic production of advanced EV
batteries. The Electric Vehicles for American
Low-Carbon Living program includes investments to
create batteries with faster charging times, and improved
resilience and energy efficiency.
- Bollinger Motors will
partner with Roush
Industries to manufacture all-electric commercial
platforms and chassis cabs.
- The Alliance for Automotive Innovation released a policy framework to address the reuse, repurpose and recycling of EV battery components.
- The CEOs of automakers including Stellantis, Tesla and Volvo have
warned component
shortages and higher raw material
prices could present significant risk to
EV supply chains.
Market Trends and Regulatory
- Passenger car sales in China fell by
35.7% in April compared to the same period one year ago, according
to estimates from
the China Passenger Car Association.
- The Wall Street Journal reports record-high diesel prices are straining operational costs for trucking companies and exacerbating high transportation costs throughout supply chains.
OEMs/Suppliers
- Due to the semiconductor
shortage, Stellantis and Ford temporarily idled
production last week at plants in Illinois, Kentucky and
Ontario. Affected models included the Jeep Cherokee, Ford
Escape, Ford Edge, Lincoln Corsair and Lincoln Nautilus.
- Stellantis temporarily halted
production at its minivan plant in Windsor, Ontario last
week due to an unspecified parts
shortage that was not related to
semiconductors.
- Toyota will
reduce production at 12 plants in Japan for up to six days
in May due to the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns in
China, and global production targets were reduced by
approximately 50,000 vehicles.
- GM announced a
partnership with INRIX Inc. to provide safety
solutions data to the U.S. Department of
Transportation through analytics from a cloud-based
application called Safety View by GM Future Roads &
Inrix.
- Toyota will use computer vision technology from Austin, Texas-based startup Invisible AI in its North American assembly plants to process body motion data for the purpose of enhancing safety, quality and efficiency.
Connected/Autonomous Vehicles and Mobility Services
- Magna announced new
advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) for the 2022
Toyota Tundra in the North American market, including
a "complete surround view system" that provides a
"fly-around 3D image of the vehicle and its environment upon
startup."
- Aurora Innovation announced a
collaboration with long-haul trucking carrier Covenant
Logistics to "explore the integration and
deployment" of Aurora's autonomous trucking product.
- GM announced a
partnership with open-source software solutions
provider Red Hat to expand
software-defined vehicle programs, including the automaker's
upcoming Ultifi platform.
- Volvo Autonomous Solutions will
partner with DHL Supply
Chain to pilot a new "hub-to-hub transport
solution" in North America.
- Stellantis' car-sharing mobility unit Free2move will acquire Share Now from the BMW and Mercedes-Benz groups, which adds service offerings in 14 European cities and 10,000 vehicles to Free2move's existing fleet of 2,500 vehicles.
Electric Vehicles and Low Emissions Technology
- Battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co.
(CATL) is vetting potential U.S. sites for a new
manufacturing facility, according to unconfirmed reports in Reuters.
- Wood Mackenzie predicts there
will be a significant U.S. market for heavy-duty
vehicle electrification. However, this segment will
likely experience a slower ramp-up due to market barriers including
lack of model availability, as well as battery capacity
concerns. [Summary only, full report not publicly
available]
- Software vulnerabilities could expose EV charging
stations as a potential target
for hackers, according to a recent report
in Automotive
News.
- Foxconn completed a
$230 million transaction to acquire Lordstown
Motors' Ohio factory, and the site will become a
joint venture between the two companies to produce electric pickup
trucks.
- Subaru will
invest $1.9 billion on EV battery capacity over the next
five years as part of a broader investment in
electrification.
- Nissan indicated it may add a third U.S. plant by the end of the decade, citing the importance of production localization as well as the potential need to meet future EV demand. The automaker currently has U.S. manufacturing facilities in Canton, Mississippi and Smyrna, Tennessee.
Analysis by Julie Dautermann, Competitive Intelligence Analyst
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