Nissan will start producing its compact SUV, the Kicks, at the Oppama plant in Kanagawa Prefecture in the second half of fiscal 2025 (October 2025 to March 2026), according to Nikkei. The decision targets raising plant utilization, which has dropped to approximately 40%, far below the 80% breakeven point.
China's auto sales reached 2.08 million units in June, marking the highest monthly total since June 2022. Analysts believe the spike was likely driven by consumers accelerating purchases in anticipation of cuts or shifts to government subsidy programs.
Kurt Sievers, the CEO of Dutch semiconductor giant NXP Semiconductors, who is set to officially step down at the end of October 2025, recently visited Shanghai and met with the mayor of Shanghai, Zheng Gong. Sievers stated that the Chinese market has become NXP's largest single global market. The company values its cooperation with Chinese enterprises and believes that success in China will translate into global success. Notably, Sievers' successor, Rafael Sotomayor, also accompanied him on this trip, underscoring NXP's strong emphasis on the Chinese market.
Facing growing frustration from suppliers, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has launched a national complaint platform to address delayed payments by automakers — a widespread issue that has plagued small and medium-sized suppliers amid the country's ongoing automotive price wars. Whether the platform can offer effective relief, however, remains uncertain.
Jim Keller, acclaimed semiconductor architect and Tenstorrent CEO, will deliver his first keynote at the fifth RISC-V Summit China from July 16 to 19 in Shanghai. His speech, "Open Hardware for Future Intelligence," highlights the event's growing importance amid US-China tech tensions and China's push for chip independence.
A sweeping Republican-sponsored bill informally dubbed the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" has cleared both chambers of Congress and now awaits President Donald Trump's signature. Once signed into law, it will repeal the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a cornerstone of former President Biden's climate and clean energy agenda, effectively marking the end of a short-lived era of generous federal subsidies for electric vehicles and renewable energy.
Driven by global industrial trends and supportive local policies, Taiwan has taken an aggressive lead in developing its electric scooter industry. With major players like Gogoro Network and Kymco's Ionex already entrenched, a potential new entrant — a coalition between Sanyang Motor (SYM) and CPC Corporation, Taiwan's state-owned oil company — is sparking debate over whether the market can support a third battery-swapping system.
South Korea's LG Energy Solution (LGES) posted a significantly stronger operating profit in the second quarter of 2025, ending a streak of six consecutive quarters of losses and highlighting improved company fundamentals. Operating income rose 152% year-over-year to KRW492.2 billion (approx. US$355 million), despite a 9.7% decrease in revenue to KRW5.56 trillion. Data from financial platform FnGuide showed that LGES's sales were 2.9% below analysts' consensus estimates, while its operating profit surpassed forecasts by 56.3%.
As the calendar turns to July, major car brands across Taiwan are rolling out aggressive promotional campaigns in a bid to jumpstart lackluster sales. However, while automakers are signaling a renewed determination for a strong second half, their optimism is not shared by the supply chain, which paints a more sobering picture of the market's current state.
Taiwan's Seetel, a lithium battery and energy storage manufacturer, said Tuesday it formed a strategic alliance with Canadian energy storage solutions provider Energy Plug to expand into global markets.
The Trump administration has moved to expand its sweeping tariff policy on global automotive imports, introducing a new round of "reciprocal tariffs" that target specific auto components previously excluded from earlier duties. The new measures are separate from those already enacted this spring on complete vehicles and key parts.
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