November 27, 2024
As Donald Trump prepares for his second term as US president, his campaign rhetoric quickly transforms into aggressive trade policies. The president-elect has reignited fears of wide-ranging trade wars, confirming his plans to impose substantial tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada. Cars and automotive parts assembled in this region could face excess duties of […]
October 31, 2024
With the European tariffs coming into force this week, China is putting pressure on its carmakers not to invest in countries that voted for the tax wall. Mainly France and Italy were the driving forces for imposing tariffs, and instead, China suggested favoring Germany or Hungary, who voted against them. According to Reuters, quoting two […]
October 04, 2024
“Today’s vote is a fatal signal for the European automotive industry. What is needed now is a quick settlement between the EU Commission and China to prevent a trade conflict from which no one gains,” BMW CEO Oliver Zipse said, according to Reuters. In an attempt to avoid a ‘damaging’ trade war with China, BMW […]
October 04, 2024
Tesla has reported strong production and delivery figures for the third quarter of 2024. After producing nearly 410,000 vehicles in the second quarter, the electric car giant boosted output to 469,796 units in Q3 and delivered 462,890 cars to customers. These numbers represent a 14.3% increase in production and a 4.3% rise in deliveries compared […]
September 24, 2024
In the first eight months of this year, China exported 4.09 million vehicles worldwide, with Russia (705,514 units) as its biggest export market. Belgium ranks fifth with 182,504 cars. However, when the Chinese Customs data are broken down to figures for NEVs only (New Energy Vehicles, as China calls electrified cars), Belgium tops the world […]
August 27, 2024
SAIC Motor Corporation, the owner of the MG brand, which is currently the best-selling Chinese EV in Europe, is hatching a plan to export its popular MG4 model straight out of its Thai manufacturing plant to sail around the EU’s maximum 46.3% (36.3 % + 10%) import tax. According to Thai media, the factory was […]
August 23, 2024
China’s automotive sector overcapacity is the root of its current trade tensions with the West. Though Beijing denies beefing up its production stock, a new German study has sized the capacity, highlighting the souped-up growth. And contrary to what one might think, the leading brand in production isn’t BYD. China’s automotive industry has rapidly expanded […]
July 31, 2024
Chinese carmakers registered a record share of 11% of the EU’s plus UK’s electric car market in June, as they rushed to import as many EVs as possible before July 5th, the date the European Commission fixed for preliminary import taxes on Chinese cars. The figures come from market analysis by the German automotive data […]
June 28, 2024
It’s official now: due to the 100% import taxes the Biden Administration imposes on EVs built in China, America will have to wait for the Volvo EX30 ‘made in Belgium’ to arrive. And that will be no sooner than 2025. People who had already paid a $500 deposit to make a reservation got a message […]
June 24, 2024
Belgian high-voltage operator Elia is calling on the market to be vigilant this summer. There is a chance that Belgium will produce too much power because all available nuclear power plants are running, and especially because a lot of solar panels have been added this year. This threatens to put pressure on the electricity system. […]
June 21, 2024
“Unprecedented” and “shocking”. The Chinese automotive players involved in the EU survey into state subsidies are stirred by the resulting tariff proposal. They have joined forces and called upon Beijing to impose retaliating import duties, which could hurt the premium brand’s sales performance in the region. Chinese manufacturers are urging their government to implement punitive […]
June 14, 2024
The EU Commission revealed on Wednesday the rate of the ‘intended’ extra taxes on imported Chinese EVs, ranging from 17.4 to 38.1% on top of the existing 10% import duties on all cars today. China, meanwhile, accuses the EU of intended protectionism and warns “not to go the wrong way.” It threatens to open a […]
May 27, 2024
According to the media outlet Automotive News Europe, China plans to retaliate against the tariff hike from the Biden Administration, and a similar plan from the EU is expected within the coming weeks. China is considering elevating these duties from 15% to 25% Elevated tariffs from Chinese customs could impact US and EU automakers, exacerbating […]
April 12, 2024
Officials failed to reach on agreement on EV subsidies for cars exported from the EU to the US. The recent negotiations were considered a last chance before presidential elections might turn the tables. However, negotiations will continue. The EU and the US have held talks for some time to reach a bilateral agreement over EV […]
April 10, 2024
Western European ports, particularly Zeebrugge and Antwerp, face unprecedented challenges as they morph into vast car storage facilities. The influx of vehicles, especially from Asia and America, has outpaced the outflow, leading to significant congestion. The bottleneck has several automakers scouting for inland parking lots to keep up with the pace of factory output. The large […]
April 01, 2024
China has escalated its confrontation with the United States over electric vehicle (EV) subsidies by filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO). Beijing deems the practices under the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) “discriminatory”. It feels targeted in particular and believes they are a form of unfair competition in the changing automotive market. […]
March 28, 2024
For the first time since the outbreak of the Ukrainian war, a Russian factory has rebooted the manufacture of a Western car model. The automotive plant in Kaluga has officially started churning out Citroën C5 Aircross models for the local market. Citroën-owner Stellantis admits having lost control in the region. The PSMA Rus facility, as […]
March 07, 2024
The fire on the cargo ship Felicity Ace, which caused the loss of several thousand vehicles, is finding its way to court. A probe points to a Porsche EV aboard with a defective battery having ignited the fire. That kept the ship burning for two weeks before it sank. The Volkswagen Group is facing lawsuits […]
March 06, 2024
According to a document published on Tuesday and cited by the Reuters news agency, the EU Commission says it has sufficient evidence ‘tending’ to show Chinese EVs were being subsidized, and it will start ‘customs registrations’ on Thursday to prepare for possible retroactive tariffs. That means that import tariffs could be imposed retrospectively if the […]
March 05, 2024
Leapmotor, the Chinese start-up with backing from Stellantis, has launched its first ‘global’ model: the C10, an electric or range-extended family SUV with a very aggressive price point. The model is now available in China for around €16,500, with an international launch following later this year. Leapmotor first presented the C10 at the IAA in […]
February 29, 2024
China’s top EV maker, BYD, keeps on pushing further in the price war it started two weeks ago, now targeting the mid-to-high-end EV market, according to Chinese media, by lowering the prices of its Han sedan and Tang SUV hybrids by 11 to 14%. The fully electric Han gets an update as ‘Glory Edition’ costing […]
January 22, 2024
Volvo Car Gent celebrates a stellar year as it nailed a total production of 230 527 cars in 2023, marking a significant 19,4% increase from the previous year’s output of 192 991 vehicles. It’s the first time in four years that the factory has surpassed the figure of 200 000 cars per year. In 2024, […]
February 14, 2023
Shortly after agreeing on the future of the Alliance, Renault and Nissan have announced a renewed commitment to India with a $600 million investment that will support the development and production of six new models, some of which also meant for the international market. Just a week after announcing the new, more balanced approach to […]
November 07, 2022
The French Minister of Transportation, Clément Beaune, pleads for a review clause in 2026 to readdress the end of the combustion engine in Europe by 2035. Beaune joins his compatriot Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs, who told European carmakers to keep investing in and assembling the internal combustion engine. In an interview with […]
August 08, 2022
The Tesla Model X and Model S are available again in Europe after almost two years. Both top models of the American EV manufacturer were unavailable for a while, and orders outside the US were also put on hold since the end of 2021. A chain of events was at the root of this curious […]
May 10, 2022
Brussels public transport company MIVB/STIB has offered 30 decommissioned buses to Cuba. It concerns 20 Van Hool A330 D1 buses and 10 Mercedes Citaro articulated buses. They are Euro 4 buses, which, under the low-emission zone (LEZ), are no longer allowed in the Brussels region from 1 January 2022. According to the newspaper La Dernière […]
May 09, 2022
Next month, BMW will launch the i3, but only on the Chinese market. It’s an extended version of the 3-Series marketed in Europe. This i3 eDrive35L will also be built locally at the Chinese BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. and will be offered with a 100% electric drive. For the time being, there are no plans […]
May 06, 2022
The annual report of Car Pass, the organization that has been charting odometer fraud for 15 years, reveals that in the past year 1 578 cases of odometer fraud were detected in Belgium. The biggest problem is still with vehicles that come from abroad, there is even a 2% increase in the number of fraud […]
April 04, 2022
No, it wasn’t an April fools’ joke. On Friday, April 1st, EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton appealed to European carmakers, asking them to continue manufacturing combustion engine cars despite their ban in the EU from 2035. “Even if Europe bans the sale of internal combustion engines, other countries in the world will continue to […]
March 23, 2022
The VW Group has outlined its electrification strategy for the US in a media gathering. Backed by an investment of $7,1 billion through 2027, the German automotive group plans to launch a portfolio of 25 battery-powered models by the end of the decade. Sales of models with an internal combustion engine will start phasing out […]
March 16, 2022
According to an analysis by Wells Fargo, global car production could shrink with up to 700 000 units during the first half of the year or 15% of Europe’s output. With 17 factories, Ukraine is one of the top producers of wire harnesses, which is in particularly high demand for building EVs. Due to the […]
March 10, 2022
Michael Fux has just received his Hispano Suiza Carmen Boulogne. This is the first example to go to the US. The manufacturer came to life again in 2019, when it showed a prototype of the Carmen at the Geneva Motor Show. Now, the first car, a special version of the Carmen, has been delivered. The […]
March 03, 2022
On both sides of the frontline, the automotive industry has to take measures to cope with the consequences of the hostilities in Ukraine. While local production in Russia is mostly suspended until further notice, international car export to the country is grinding to a halt. Meanwhile, the sanctions lead to the temporary closure of assembly […]
March 02, 2022
Toyota Motor Europe (TME) has sent its first batch of Yaris cars across the channel by train freight. This stepping stone will lead to a broader logistics network that ultimately connects the European plants of the car manufacturer by rail. As a result, it targets a significant CO2 reduction. In France, Toyota’s Valenciennes Vehicle Logistics […]
January 25, 2022
On Monday, the American investment company KKR made a take-over bid of 1,56 billion euros for the Accell Group the Dutch owner of bicycle brands like Raleigh, Sparta, Koga, Babboe, Haibike, Winora, Ghost, Batavus, Lapierre, and Carqon. The KKR consortium, a group of investors, will give the Dutch bicycle manufacturer a strong financial boost, which […]
January 03, 2022
From 1 January this year, France restricts international freight transport by trucks over 44 tons. More than 40 tons will only be permitted for intermodal transport by French trucks. France has ended all ambiguity surrounding the maximum weight for cross-border transport with the new legislation. The UPTR, the Professional Union of Transport and Logistics in […]
September 30, 2021
Active Ants, a subsidiary of the Belgian bpost group, has opened a brand-new e-fulfillment center in Willebroek. In this new state-of-the-art warehouse, people and robots are working together to pack thousands of parcels for webshops. The bpost group continues to grow (+3% compared to 2020) and, despite the record year 2020, e-commerce has not reached […]
June 07, 2021
Early May 2021, Nissan announced that it opened its order books in the Japanese home market for the all-electric powered SUV. However, today, it has become clear that it cannot meet the proposed deadlines due to shortages in the chip market. The Ariya will be an additional 100% electric model for Nissan, positioned above the […]
May 27, 2021
In recent months, we have seen the European market flooded by relatively cheap electric vehicles made in China. Despite the tense trade relationship between the States and China, we see a reversal, as GM wants to build electric vehicles on Chinese soil with its Ultium platform. Platform strategy The Ultium base is a platform that […]
May 07, 2021
While numerous glorifying press releases from German manufacturers reach us about the excellent figures for Q1 2021, the Ifo Institute (Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich) warns that one-third of the jobs in the German car industry is in danger. In a study ordered by the German car industry federation (VDA), […]
May 06, 2021
Since 2015, Genesis has been a separate brand within the Hyundai Group, of which Kia is also a part. On Wednesday, the brand announced that the luxury brand wants to commercialize its first product on the Old Continent this summer, starting in June in Germany, Switzerland, and the UK with classic ICE cars. End of […]
April 20, 2021
Although Harley-Davidson is currently able to present good results, the European future looks bleak for the American motorbike manufacturer. From June 2021, 56% of import duties will have to be paid on these iconic American motorbikes. So far Harley had found a way to pay only 6% initially, saying the bikes were assembled outside the […]
February 08, 2021
British exports to the European Union fell by more than two-thirds in January compared to the same month in 2020. This is according to data from the British freight forwarding organization Road Haulage Association (RHA). Although the corona crisis also plays a role, a significant proportion of the drop is linked to the extra paperwork […]
January 25, 2021
The continued existence of Nissan’s British production site has been regularly questioned in recent months due to Brexit. Today, the Japanese manufacturer announces that the assembly plant will be preserved and that there will be an expansion in battery production. This announcement is good news for the 6 000 employees currently working at the Nissan […]
January 07, 2021
Last year, the British car market collapsed: 1,63 million car sales (-29,4%) is the lowest figure since 1992, and the regress is the strongest (in one year) since… 1943. Moreover, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) is not convinced that Brexit will solve things, despite the last-minute trade agreement. SMMT estimates the loss […]
