Short Torque

Tesla to report strong deliveries in China

Tesla is poised to report one of its best quarters in China, the latest retail sales data showed, after becoming the first electric vehicle maker in the country to cut prices and retain its market share. The United States EV maker's retail sales in China totaled 106,915 units from Jan 1 to March 19, or 1,371 units per day on average, according to data from China Merchants Bank International. The organization tracks car insurance registrations. That was slightly higher than the 1,327 units it sold daily on average in the fourth quarter of 2022 in China, when Tesla sold a total of 122,038 cars during its best quarter so far.

Evergrande autos in doubt over funding

China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group said on Thursday it may have to halt production of electric vehicles if it could not obtain fresh funding, after delivering more than 900 units of its flagship Hengchi 5 model. The EV manufacturing unit of the property developer China Evergrande Group said it was aiming to cut costs through measures such as reducing staff numbers and improving management efficiency. "In the face of its inability to obtain additional liquidity, the group is at risk of discontinuing production," it said. If, however, it could obtain financing of more than 29 billion yuan ($4.2 billion) in the future, it aimed to launch a number of flagship models and hoped to achieve mass production, the company said in a statement.

New electric Volvo to be built in China

Volvo's all-new electric vehicle slated for launch this year will be manufactured in China and exported to Europe and Japan, reported Japanese news outlet Nikkei on Thursday. The new EV will target a "brand-new segment", said Volvo CEO Jim Rowan. The new car will be a subcompact sport utility vehicle smaller than the company's other models, or around the same size as a Toyota Corolla Cross. Volvo will hold down costs by adopting a shared platform from Geely Group, Volvo's Chinese parent, and by assembling the vehicle at Chinese facilities.

Ford's EV unit forecast to lose $3 bn in 2023

Ford Motor expects its electric vehicle business unit to lose $3 billion this year, but remains on track to achieve a pretax margin of 8 percent by late 2026, the company said. The projected loss was revealed ahead of a briefing for investors and analysts on Thursday to discuss details of the automaker's new financial reporting format. Starting with first-quarter results, which will be announced on May 2, Ford will begin reporting by business unit for Model e (electric vehicles), Blue (combustion vehicles) and Pro (commercial vehicles and services).

S Korea vehicle exports hit record in February

South Korea's automotive exports hit a record high figure in February thanks to robust demand for eco-friendly vehicles, government data showed. Car shipments soared 47.1 percent from a year earlier to $5.6 billion in February, according to the country's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The latest figure marks the country's highest monthly auto shipment, which grew for the seventh consecutive month dating back to August last year. Exports for eco-friendly cars jumped 83.4 percent to $2.02 billion during the period, while the number of exported units surged 61.6 percent to a record high of 63,000.

Agencies - Motoring