The Latest SAA Newsletter

• Register for the Mobility Innovations Summit on Nov. 15
• Free Lunch & Learn: Recruiting, Staffing & Retention has Dramatically Changed — Join the Discussion
• Register for Automotive Industry 2023 Through the Eyes of Financial Experts
• The U.S. Light Vehicle Market Showed Signs of Life in October, as a Strong Close Helped Sales Grow Robustly YoY
• Auto Sector Remains Susceptible to Semiconductor Shortage
• Creating a Post-Pandemic Automotive Industry Gameplan
• October Auto Sales Bring Positive Results for Many
• A Worrying Problem Emerges in the Auto Industry
• Another Exit from the Autonomous Vehicle Moon Shot Race
• Sixty-Five Percent of Vehicle Owners Consider Driving Less as Insurance Costs Climb
• Demand for Autonomous Vehicles Encourages Alliances with Start-Ups
• Gas Demand Declines as Recession Fears Weigh Down Oil Market Expectations
• A Reckoning for EV Battery Raw Materials
• The New Normal: Improving Flexibility in Global Supply Chains So They Are Less Likely to Break
• ‘Titanium Economy’ Auto Suppliers May Want To Take A Page From Tesla

Winter is Coming: The Auto Industry Faces Significant Risk Exposure from the Looming European Energy Crunch

With energy prices in Europe skyrocketing, placing business bottom lines in triage mode, a harsh winter could place certain automotive sectors at risk of being unable to keep their production lines running.

Traditional Automakers to Ramp Up EV Competition in China

Traditional automakers in China are likely to boost their electric vehicle (EV) market shares by absorbing more of the cost increase caused by ongoing supply-chain bottlenecks, says Fitch Ratings. They will be supported by their more profitable internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) and more robust funding access, compared to the EV start-ups.

2022 SAA Events

The SAA has a robust line-up of in-person and virtual events planned for 2022. Check regularly for updates.

Click here to learn more.

This is Where Electric Vehicle Adoption is Headed Between 2022 and 2025

The number of consumers looking to buy EVs globally has hit 52%. This is the first time 50% has been exceeded, and it represents a rise of 22 percentage points in just two years.

Toyota, Honda Finish 1-2; General Motors Finishes at 3rd in Annual Supplier Working Relations Study

Results of the 22nd annual North American Automotive OEM – Supplier Working Relations Index® (WRI®) Study show in spite of supply chain shortages and production volatility, transition pains to electric vehicles, logistics constraints, and increasing raw material costs impacting automakers and suppliers, two of the six major U.S. OEMs made substantial improvement in their WRI® scores and two held steady, while two others fell – one significantly.

The Top Business Intelligence and Analytics Trends for the Automotive Industry 2022

What’s struck me in the past years is how the tools we have at our disposal, at a societal and corporate level, are insufficient to solve the big challenges we face. We see this with the pandemic, climate change, social inequity and much more. And, more recently, in the disruptions in supply chains, which have created global shortages of key components and materials – many of those impacting the automotive industry. To solve our biggest issues, we don’t have a choice but to get together and create joint, interwoven solutions.

Global Demand Braces for Impact

After two and a half years of facing one major setback after another, the global Light Vehicle market continues to struggle to gain any real traction. Even though it has posted stronger selling rates in recent months, that is primarily a result of a rapid improvement in the China market, which itself is benefitting from a temporary purchase tax cut on cars. Across much of the world, supply bottlenecks remain the key reason for holding back better sales results. However, as Europe and North America head into the winter months, economic prospects look increasingly dismal in the face of stubbornly high inflation, and underlying demand for new vehicles is inevitably being eroded.

Pandemic Acts as Catalyst for Additional Change in Auto Industry, Analysts Suggest

The COVID crisis is proving to be a bigger accelerator for altering the automotive industry in fundamental ways than originally expected. OEMs must continue to grapple with the challenges brought about by autonomous driving, shared mobility, driveline electrification, but now there are additional changes in manufacturing as automaking transforms to a product from a service.

SAA Automotive Outlook Conference Recap: “Learn to Stop Worrying and Love Volatility”

Last Sunday I was honored to present FSG’s Global Economic Outlook at the Society of Automotive Analysts’ Outlook conference in Detroit, the unofficial kickoff of the prestigious North American international Auto Show. I lightheartedly titled my presentation “How to Stop Worrying and Love Volatility” because 2019 promised to feel even more unstable for business and investors than 2018.