Autos

New Ferrari boss needs to prove green credentials

18 September 2018

Louis Camilleri fixed an initial blunder by reaffirming the targets of predecessor Sergio Marchionne. He also wants to sell more eco-friendly cars. Yet the goals look ambitious, and Ferrari is in the slow lane on hybrids. A late move into sports utility vehicles doesn’t help.

Google’s car deal is hazard light for auto groups

18 September 2018

Renault and Nissan will install the Android operating system in their cars from 2021, making it more likely others will follow. That extends the search giant’s data dominance beyond smartphones. Consumers will win, but carmakers may give up a valuable source of future income.

Guest view: Trump trade war threatens Korean peace

18 September 2018

Invoking national security to impose tariffs on car exporters such as Hyundai and Kia is myopic, argue the Korea Society’s president and a former U.S. ambassador to Seoul. As fresh talks with Pyongyang start, it’s worth remembering that politics cannot be divorced from economics.

German giant adds heft to IPO starting line

17 September 2018

The billionaire owner of Knorr-Bremse plans to sell shares in the maker of brakes for trucks and trains. Outside investors will get little say, making a mooted $14 bln price tag ambitious. Yet the reassuringly solid business marks a welcome shift from dicey European offerings.

Indonesia’s Go-Jek can hitch ride on Meituan IPO

17 September 2018

The smartphone-based taxi service is raising about $2 bln. New cash will help Nadiem Makarim’s unicorn expand in the region and even into online shopping. A successful market debut by its Chinese backer Meituan Dianping also should fuel Go-Jek’s quest to be a multi-purpose app.

Nio zooms from carmaker to tech star

14 September 2018

China’s answer to Tesla reversed out of a dismal NYSE debut as its shares jumped 76 pct in their second day of trading. That imputes a $13 bln market cap that values Nio less like a manufacturer and more like an internet darling. Production figures make it hard to justify.

Hadas: Japan can revel in fall from market glory

12 September 2018

The country was the king of stocks in 1989, with 32 of the world’s 50 largest listed companies. It hasn't fully recovered since the crash; only Toyota is left today. Japanese incomes, though, are growing as fast as in any developed economy. For that, market caps hardly matter.

Japan’s Renesas speeds into autonomous M&A wreck

11 September 2018

The Tokyo-based chipmaker is buying U.S. peer Integrated Device Technology for $6.7 bln. A promised uplift in revenue from selling self-driving and connected-car technology sounds optimistic. Even if Renesas can achieve such synergies, the return on investment barely stacks up.

Didi falls way behind Uber on road to IPO

11 September 2018

Both burn heaps of cash, but new figures reveal that the $56 bln Chinese app pockets just two cents of every rider dollar. For $72 bln Uber, the roughly equal sum after subsidies is 23 cents. Differences are getting clearer even if neither looks ready to ride onto public markets.

Chinese Tesla’s $1.3 bln IPO revs up too fast

11 September 2018

Electric-car maker Nio has a rich price tag to match its premium branding. Under the bonnet, though, it looks less shiny. The group combines an opaque legal structure favoured by tech giants with dependence on a local auto partner. Sales are still nascent, and rivals abound.

Musk takes a couple of toes off the pedal

10 September 2018

The $45 bln electric-car maker's CEO has promoted an insider to run the autos unit, among other changes, after "in-depth" talks with directors. An experienced outsider would have been better. Musk remains free to overpromise and underdeliver.

Volvo’s IPO problems go beyond brewing trade war

10 September 2018

The carmaker’s Chinese owner has paused a float worth up to $30 bln. Even without America’s tariff antics, that price tag would have been far too high. Investors are unconvinced old-school auto groups will get a return for their spending on electric and autonomous cars.

Tesla risk is Musk blowing smoke, not inhaling

7 September 2018

Model 3 sales may be speeding up. But Tesla’s stock and bonds slumped after another lawsuit, the exit of its top accountant and HR boss, and the CEO’s pot-smoking podcast appearance. It all makes Musk’s goals less convincing, and needed capital more costly to raise.

Foreign carmakers are caught in a China drive-by

7 September 2018

Beijing wants to slash excess auto production at a time when Nissan, Toyota and others hope to expand. Draft rules could cut as much as a third of capacity in the world’s largest car market. Official feuding over the issue too could prove a speed bump, even for global giants.

NAFTA survival rests on Ottawa showmanship

29 August 2018

Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland is talking up how Mexico’s U.S. “concessions” help Canada. Now she needs a deal, not least on the country’s punitive dairy tariffs, that keeps both the U.S. president and her anti-Trump fellow citizens happy. That’ll require some smooth talking.

Aston Martin IPO relies on turbo-charged profit

29 August 2018

The British luxury sports-car maker wants to list in London. Promises of Ferrari-like profitability and rapid growth could easily justify a more than 5 bln pound valuation, but look a stretch after this year’s flat margin. Investors will want more clarity on Aston’s growth path.

Market dominance defends China’s Didi from murder

29 August 2018

The $56 bln ride-hailing app is in big trouble after a driver killed a female passenger. With #MeToo gaining traction in China and an IPO in the pipe, the timing is terrible. Didi’s near-monopoly protects it from a shutdown, but tighter regulation could punish profitability.

Tesla recharge rests in board’s hands

27 August 2018

Elon Musk’s abortive buyout bid dented his credibility and may bring legal and regulatory censure. A narrower focus for the boss, realistic goals and a capital raise would help the company back on the road, even if the stock tanks. But it requires Tesla’s cozy directors step up.

Musk flip-flop makes job harder to do – and keep

25 August 2018

Tesla’s CEO has pulled the plug on taking the $55 bln electric-car maker private, capping a record of overpromising and underdelivering. The abysmal handling of the half-baked idea calls Musk’s judgment further into question, just as Tesla needs cool heads to become profitable.

Geely’s cruise-control ride is coming to an end

22 August 2018

Volvo's Chinese sister cranked out another solid set of results, with profit up 54 pct to nearly $1 bln. Margins expanded and its domestic market share grew. At nine times expected earnings, Geely fetches a premium to global peers. It’ll have to raise its EV game to justify it.