Increased vehicle sales helped Toyota's profits in the April to June period. The automaker saw its operating income grow by 93.7% from 2022 to JPY1.12 trillion (US$7.86 billion). In addition, it plans to enhance R&D efforts in China to speed up EV development in the market.
Leading precision test and measurement instrumentation supplier Chroma released its financial results for the second quarter of 2023 on July 31. Chairman Leo Huang said China's market reshuffle in the first half of 2023 impacted the EV supply chain. Demand will likely rebound in the fourth quarter.
Tesla has seen its North American Charging Standard (NACS) gaining traction after winning Ford over two months ago. However, DIGITIMES analyst Evan Chen said Combined Charging System (CCS) Type 1, the second most-used charging connector in the US, is unlikely to be phased out soon as it has government support.
A new charging company is poised to join the heating EV market in North America. BMW, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis announced together on July 26 that they will establish a joint venture of charging network in the region. The first stations are expected to open in the US in 2024.
Renesas Electronics said on July 27 that uncertainties remain in the automotive sector, especially with changes in the Chinese market. The company also said it will go slow on its silicon carbide (SiC) production, planning to ship out samples in the third quarter of this year.
Despite gradual recovery in the car market, suppliers of automotive LED applications are bracing for weak sales growth in the second half of 2023, according to industry sources.
Tesla has started allowing transfers of its Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology in China within a limited time to encourage customers to buy a new car. However, many FSD features have not been activated in the country. Tesla is not the only case. Most foreign carmakers have hit roadblocks when developing their AI expertise in China.
Some countries have started to phase out subsidy programs for EVs after years of promotion. The situation has created dramatically different results in China and Germany. The former sees EVs continue to drive the automotive industry's growth, while the latter experiences competition between EVs and internal combustion engine vehicles.
Car semiconductor shortages linger while automotive sales have recovered since the second half of 2022. According to Nikkei, although Japan-based carmakers have reduced new vehicle delivery time, they keep facing a scarcity of certain semiconductors.
Leading semiconductor companies like NXP, Nvidia and MediaTek are working on using AI in future smart cockpits. Universal Scientific Industrial (USI), which is experienced in system-in-package (SiP) technology, recently said it is collaborating with automotive SoC solution providers to develop automotive compute SiP/SoM modules. The solution will help car OEMs and tier-1 suppliers accelerate smart cockpit development.
Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are gearing up for the development of graphene-based components to improve the durability and energy efficiency of their products such as semiconductors and home appliances, according to a report by Korean medium Chosun Biz.
Foxconn has developed multiple partnerships as it scales up its semiconductor and EV businesses. The company recently announced a collaboration with US-based semiconductor company Analog Devices (ADI). The pair signed an MoU about jointly developing a new-generation digital cockpit platform and high-performance battery management system.
Automotive supplier and contract manufacturer Magna will build the first two supplier facilities in Ford's BlueOval City in Tennessee, the US. The company plans to invest more than US$790 million to construct plants that will produce battery enclosures and other components.
Audi hopes to gain EV market share in China as its collaboration with Shanghai-based SAIC Motor grows deeper. SAIC confirmed on July 20 that the pair will further its partnership and speed up the development of Audi EVs in one of the world's largest automotive markets.
Automotive supplier BorgWarner and semiconductor company Onsemi announced on July 18 the expansion of their strategic partnership. BorgWarner will integrate Onsemi's silicon carbide (SiC) devices into its power modules to increase the performance of EVs.
