TOP NEWS
* Walmart Inc. is suing Tesla Inc. following repeated fire incidents of the electric-car maker's solar panels at some Walmart stores in the U.S. The retail giant accused Tesla of "years of gross negligence" and said the fires had already cost it hundreds of thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket losses. Shares of Tesla fell 1.59% in aftermarket trading Aug. 20.
* Chinese carmaker Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd. posted a 40% year-over-year drop in first-half profit, citing lack of consumer confidence due to the U.S.-China trade friction and changes to emission standards in China. The profit attributable to equity holders of the group in the period was 4.01 billion Chinese yuan, marginally below mean consensus analysts estimate of 4.05 billion yuan, compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence. Total revenue of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. Ltd.'s Hong Kong-listed subsidiary fell 11% to 47.56 billion yuan.
CARMAKERS
* Shares in Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV and Renault SA surged after Italian publication Il Sole 24 Ore reported that merger talks between the companies are back on. Shares of FCA were up 3.7% to €11.56 in Milan, while Renault's shares were trading at €51.54, up 4.9%, in Paris.
* Daimler AG will carry out a review of the product portfolio of its van division, which has seen a steep decline in sales due to regulatory action against diesel-engine vehicles, Reuters reported, citing Marcus Breitschwerdt, head of Mercedes-Benz's vans division. The executive was speaking at the launch of the Mercedes-Benz EQV electric van in Stuttgart and said he expects 15% to 25% of vans sold by the company by 2025 to be fully electric.
ELECTRIC AND AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES
* Chinese electric-vehicle maker Lixiang Automotive, formerly known as CHJ Automotive Chehejia, raised $530 million in a series C financing round led by online food delivery giant Meituan Dianping's CEO and founder Wang Xing, DealStreetAsia reported, citing an announcement from early investor Plum Ventures. Xing reportedly invested $300 million in the EV maker.
* NIO Inc. is looking to carve out its autonomous driving business and combine it with Didi Chuxing Technology Co. Ltd.'s recently spun out self-driving vehicle unit, according to Chinese media reports. The two companies reportedly have held several rounds of negotiations.
MOBILITY SERVICES
* Estonia-based ride-sharing service Bolt launched a food delivery service in its hometown of Tallinn and said it plans to roll out Bolt Food this year in South Africa, Latvia and Lithuania as well, Reuters reported.
POLICY, REGULATIONS AND SAFETY
* The California Department of Motor Vehicles will investigate Care by Volvo, the vehicle subscription service by Zhejiang Geely-owned Volvo Cars, over claims by California New Car Dealers Association that it violates state vehicle code, Automotive News reported. The DMV will investigate claims that the service diverts customers away from dealers; Volvo failed to properly notify franchisees and the New Motor Vehicle Board about the program; Care preferentially allocates vehicles and sales to certain dealerships, and it "undermines the purpose of prohibiting payment packing."
* Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz may reach a compromise with California regulators and voluntarily agree to make light vehicles more efficient annually through the 2026 model year, The New York Times reported. It follows similar moves by Volkswagen Group, Ford Motor Co., Honda Motor Co. Ltd. and BMW AG, and would be a setback to the Trump administration, which is pressing other automakers to stand behind its proposal to ease federal fuel-efficiency targets.
AUTO PARTS AND EQUIPMENT
* Dutch satellite navigation company TomTom NV launched two application programming interface to help developers build applications for electric vehicles. The TomTom Long Distance EV Routing API determines charging stops required in a long-distance journey and considers charging time in the estimated arrival time, while EV Charging Stations Availability API provides information about the availability of the charging stations per plug type.
AUTOMOTIVE RETAIL
* Aftermarket parts retailer O'Reilly Automotive Inc. agreed to acquire Mexican auto-parts supplier Mayoreo de Autopartes y Aceites S.A. de C.V., or Mayasa, for an undisclosed sum. Mayasa has five distribution centers, supporting 20 company-owned stores and over 2,000 independent wholesalers in Mexico.
COMMERCIAL VEHICLES
* China's Weichai, part of state-owned conglomerate Shandong Heavy Industry, is in detailed discussions to buy U.K.-based struggling bus maker Wrightbus Ltd., The Telegraph reported. Weichai reportedly is the frontrunner to buy the company, which is also a target for Chinese electric-vehicle maker BYD Co. Ltd.
Early morning futures indicators pointed to a higher opening for the U.S. market.
In Asia, Hang Seng rose 0.15% to 26,270.04, while the Nikkei 225 dropped 0.28% to 20,618.57.
In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 climbed 1.08% to 7,202.23, and the Euronext 100 rose 1.30% to 1,051.79.
On the macro front
The existing home sales consensus and EIA petroleum status report are due out today.
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