Informe semanal sobre automoción de Foley

Tendencias del mercado y normativa

• Emissions standards – President Biden pledged to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by roughly 50% from 2005 levels by 2030, a goal that received support in the form of an open letter from businesses, including GM y Ford. The announcement was made during a two-day virtual Leaders Summit on Climate, which had participants from 40 nations.  Achieving a 50% reduction by the end of the decade would require significant federal support: in 2020, U.S. GHG emissions were just 10% below 2005 levels, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
  
  
  • The U.S. Transportation Department is expected to reverse actions by the Trump administration that challenged California’s authority to set its own fuel economy standards, according to The Wall Street Journal.
  
  
  • Governors from 12 states requested in a letter that the Biden administration commit to national standards ensuring that “all new passenger cars and light-duty trucks sold are zero-emission no later than 2035.”  The states are California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington. Numerous Democratic lawmakers have recently urged federal commitments to zero-emission vehicles, although Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg commented last month that he’s unaware of support by the Biden administration to pursue a federal ban on gas-powered vehicles by a specific date. California and Massachusetts have committed to phasing out sales of gasoline-powered new light vehicles by 2035, while Washington last week announced a similar commitment by 2030.  

• Infrastructure package – Republicans in the U.S. Senate have countered President Biden’s $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan with a $568 billion proposal that focuses on surface transportation and broadband connectivity improvements, with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stating: “We’re open to a more modest and targeted infrastructure bill. It’s one thing to run up the national debt when you have a 100-year pandemic. But just to keep routinely adding trillions of dollars to the national debt — I think it’s ill-advised to the future of the country.” The Republican proposal would prioritize funding for roads, bridges, transit, airports, ports, broadband and waterways.
  
  
  • During a Senate hearing related to President Biden’s infrastructure package, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo described the lack of domestic chip manufacturing as “a national security risk and an economic security risk,” noting that the U.S. is entirely dependent on Taiwan and China for semiconductors. On a global basis, the U.S. manufactures 12% of semiconductors, compared to 37% in 1990.
  
  
• The Alliance for Automotive Innovation recommends revising the federal crash test ratings to evaluate modern safety technologies such as forward collision warnings, automatic emergency braking, and lane departure warnings. The Alliance noted that the New Car Assessment Program should not only focus on crashworthiness, but on new technologies related to crash avoidance. 


• Democratic lawmakers introduced a bill last week that would provide $25 billion in federal grant money over a 10-year period to facilitate transitioning the nation’s gasoline- and diesel-powered school buses to electric powertrains. The legislation was sponsored by Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), and co-sponsored by Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), and Reps. Tony Cardenas (D-Calif.), and Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.).

OEM/Proveedores

• Recortes en la producción causados por la escasez de semiconductores – Ford extended shutdowns to include the weeks of May 3 and May 10 in Chicago; Flat Rock, Michigan</strong>; and both the F-150 y los laterales de la furgoneta Transit de Kansas City, Missouri</strong>; previously these plants were also down the weeks of April 19 and 26. Ford’s Oakville Assembly plant in Ontario will be down the week of May 3, adding one more week to a previously announced three-week shutdown. Ford’s Kentucky Truck plant is scheduled to resume production the week of May 10. Ford is also reducing output at its Planta de montaje de Ohio, and will implement downtime for a number of plants in Europe. 
  
  
  • Stellantis will reduce shifts through the end of May at its Jefferson North Assembly plant in Detroit; this site produces the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango SUVs. Subaru announced a shutdown for its Indiana plant from April 19 through April 30, resulting in a production loss of 15,000 vehicles. Jaguar Land Rover announced production shutdowns of a “limited period” for two U.K. plants due to both the semiconductor shortage and supply chain disruptions attributed to the pandemic. Daimler will reduce hours for up to 18,500 workers and stop production at two plants in Germany for one week, beginning April 23.  Mitsubishi will eliminate 16,000 units globally next month as a result of the chip shortage.
  
  
  • Volkswagen described the chip shortage as the “biggest challenge” it is experiencing, and the automaker said it does not have visibility into the full-year impact of the ongoing shortage.
  
  
• Stellantis, in partnership with Rite Aid, will offer COVID-19 vaccines for employees and their families at select UAW union halls in Metro Detroit beginning April 23; the automaker had previously announced vaccine distribution programs at locations in Belvidere, Illinois; Kokomo, Indiana, Toledo, Ohio, and Detroit. Ford recently announced on-site COVID-19 vaccinations would become available to employees at certain plants in Southeastern Michigan, Lima, Ohio, and Kansas City, Missouri.


• The 2021 Tokyo Motor Show has been canceled due to the pandemic and a revised date has not been announced.  Show organizers intend to rebrand the annual event as the Tokyo Mobility Show to counteract years of falling attendance.