TOP NEWS
* Renault SA is looking to replace CEO Thierry Bollore as the executive's close ties with former Chairman Carlos Ghosn could block the carmaker's alliance partnership with Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., the Nikkei Asian Review reported, citing French-language newspaper Le Figaro. The Paris-based auto manufacturer expects to begin a formal search for Bollore's successor soon and will reportedly discuss the move Oct. 18, the report said. Renault Chairman Jean-Dominique Senard and the French government, the company's largest stakeholder, reportedly support the move.
* The United Auto Workers asked General Motors Co. to increase vehicle production in the U.S. as it believes "the vehicles GM sells here should be built here," UAW director and lead negotiator Terry Dittes said. The strike is set to enter Day 24 on Oct. 9. The union said it has made "little progress" with GM in terms of job security, which remains one of its top concerns. Though the UAW is open to other ways of securing jobs, it would prefer to boost local production, Dittes said.
ELECTRIC VEHICLES
* Tesla Inc. and its main battery supplier Panasonic Corp. are struggling to keep their partnership intact as disagreements on pricing and production timelines, along with different management styles, continue to push the two companies apart, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is reportedly unhappy with Panasonic's battery prices and repeatedly argued with Panasonic executives over missed deadlines, the report said.
* Renault is considering building an electric vehicle designed to compete with Tesla's Model 3 and Volkswagen AG's ID.3, Bloomberg News reported, citing Emmanuel Bouvier, commercial director of Renault's electric car unit. Bouvier said the car, which could be built in partnership with Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors Corp., will likely be larger than its Zoe model and could be derived from another one of its vehicles.
* Ford Motor Co. said it started volume production for an electrified version of its Puma model in Craiova, Romania. Ford said it invested €200 million and hired 1,700 workers at the site, which will produce the first of eight electrified models it plans to launch in Europe by year-end.
* San Francisco-based electric-car charging network Volta said it will install 150 free DC fast-charging stations across the U.S. over the next 12 months.
* The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to John Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino, who developed lithium-ion batteries, which are used in electric vehicles.
AUTONOMOUS AND CONNECTED VEHICLES
* Consumer Reports said Tesla's Smart Summon feature does not match the marketing hype by the carmaker and its CEO, Elon Musk. The publication said during testing, the automation feature, which allows owners to hail their Model 3 from its parked location and lets it navigate to them, "was glitchy and at times worked intermittently, without a lot of obvious benefits for consumers."
* Volvo Cars said it will equip its electric XC40 model with the Android Automotive OS, which has features including Google's Assistant, Maps and Play Store. The Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. Ltd.-owned Swedish carmaker said the XC40 will also have pre-heating, remote locking and digital key-sharing features.
MOBILITY SERVICES
* Renault launched a mobility services subsidiary called Renault M.A.I., or Mobility as an Industry, to bring all the group's mobility activities within a single entity, simplifying the decision-making process. The new entity, which will be led by Arnaud Molinié, will team up with transport companies, regulators, cities and other mobility companies to co-develop transportation projects, including self-driving services.
* Payment provider Paypal said its $500 million investment in Uber Technologies Inc.'s IPO had declined 34%, forming the large part of a $228 million pretax loss on investments for the third quarter, Bloomberg News reported, citing a spokesperson.
* Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson proposed an hourly salary of $30 for Uber and Lyft Inc. drivers, City News Service reported. Wesson said the drivers, who currently earn less than $10 per hour, should also be given $15-per-hour wage and $15 hourly allowance for gas, insurance and maintenance.
POLICY, REGULATIONS AND SAFETY
* The National Automobile Dealers Association urged Congress to pass the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, as it would offer some trade protection for the auto industry amid threat of more tariffs, The Detroit News reported, citing Chairman Charlie Gilchrist.
* Austrian sensor specialist ams AG could launch another bid for German lighting company OSRAM Licht AG and skip the required 12-month waiting period by creating a new company for the deal, Reuters reported, citing Germany's Federal Financial Supervisory Authority. The watchdog, also called BaFin, said that ams made its initial €4.5 billion bid through its Opal BidCo subsidiary, which is the only company required to wait 12 months to launch another takeover attempt.
* German auto supplier Continental AG said its powertrain unit Vitesco Technologies signed an agreement to supply electric axle drive systems for Peugeot SA and Hyundai Motor Co. models in China and Europe.
* German conglomerate Thyssenkrupp CEO Martina Merz confirmed previous reports that it will restructure its car parts business, leading to an unspecified number of job cuts, Reuters reported. Thyssenkrupp will rename its Components Technology arm into Automotive Technology and potentially cut a majority of the 300 administrative jobs at its car parts and plant engineering divisions.
AUTOMOTIVE RETAIL
* Volkswagen-owned Audi sold 145,400 vehicles in September, up 4.5% year over year. European sales surged 33.1% to 49,550 as prior-period sales were down due to new emissions rules, while sales in the U.S. dropped 16.6% to 16,130 vehicles. Sales in China slumped 3.3% to 63,593 vehicles, Audi said.
* Porsche sold 202,318 vehicles in the first nine months of 2019, up 3% year over year. Sales in China grew 14% to 64,237, but fell 8% year over year in Germany.
* China's Chongqing Changan Automobile Co. Ltd. sold 159,848 vehicles in September, down 8% year over year, Gasgoo reported.
* Chinese automaker Chery said it sold 68,358 vehicles in September, up 2.4% year over year as exports grew 10.8% to 8,572 vehicles, Gasgoo reported.
In Asia, the Hang Seng fell 0.81% to 25,682.81, and the Nikkei 225 declined 0.61% to 21,456.38.
In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 climbed 0.45% to 7,175.70, and the Euronext 100 was up 0.63% to 1,066.43.
On the macro front
The JOLTS report, the wholesale trade report, the EIA Petroleum Status Report and the FOMC minutes are due out today.
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