Automotive and business brief

Snapshot

• Foxconn buys 50% of Mitsubishi Electric Mobility for ¥115bn to build EV platforms together, first for Japanese carmakers and later worldwide
• North America labour: Unifor members give a 97.3% strike mandate at Stellantis Canada, and VW Puebla’s union posts strike-picket rosters for Thursday
• Mexico’s zero tariff on imported SKD/CKD assembly kits applies only to the 11 carmakers already producing in the country

Top Developments

1. Foxconn buys 50% of Mitsubishi Electric Mobility for ¥115bn to build EV platforms together, first for Japanese carmakers and later worldwide

   Foxconn’s investment arm Lin Yin signed final agreements on 16 Oct to take 50% of Mitsubishi Electric Mobility, Mitsubishi Electric’s automotive equipment business, for about ¥115bn (about $727m). The deal values the business at ¥320bn enterprise value and ¥230bn equity value, and the two owners will run it as a 50/50 joint venture. Closing is planned for 1 Oct 2027, subject to antitrust and other approvals.…

   AI-generated summary · not individually reviewed · check the linked sources

   Sources: Foxconn press release (16 Oct) · Mitsubishi Electric investor deck (16 Oct, JP) · Nikkei Asia (19 Oct) · Just Auto (19 Oct)

2. North America labour: Unifor members give a 97.3% strike mandate at Stellantis Canada, and VW Puebla’s union posts strike-picket rosters for Thursday

   Unifor said on 19 Oct that 97.3% of voting Stellantis members authorised strike action if needed (votes held 17–18 Oct, covering Windsor, the Toronto casting plant and idled Brampton). The union is not yet in a legal strike position because neither side has asked the conciliator for a ‘No Board’ report; once issued, a strike or lockout can follow after 17 days (Globe and Mail).…

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   Sources: Unifor (19 Oct) · CBC News (19 Oct) · The Globe and Mail (19 Oct) · El Economista (19 Oct, ES) · Quadratín Puebla (19 Oct, ES) · LodeHoy (19 Oct, ES)

3. Mexico’s zero tariff on imported SKD/CKD assembly kits applies only to the 11 carmakers already producing in the country

   A decree published on 13 Oct cut the import duty on certain vehicle assembly parts, including semi- and completely knocked-down kits, from 10% to zero for five years. After analysts suggested Chinese brands such as GAC and JAC could use it to start assembly, the Economy Ministry clarified on 16 Oct that only carmakers with ‘productive installations’ in Mexico qualify. It named no companies, but Reuters’ reading of industry data points to Audi, BMW, Ford, GM, Honda, Kia, Mazda, Nissan, Stellantis, Toyota and VW.…

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   Sources: Reuters via Investing.com (16 Oct) · Just Auto (19 Oct)

4. Supplier distress widens: Albert Weber’s Markdorf headquarters may follow Magdeburg into insolvency, and Baosteel pushes Stellantis Atessa supplier Baomarc towards liquidation

   IG Metall told the Südkurier on 19 Oct that Weber Magdeburg filed for insolvency at the Konstanz court on 13 Oct, which the company confirmed, and that he ‘expects the worst’ for the Markdorf headquarters unless BMW stays as a customer; staff are to be informed next week. Magdeburg (about 120 jobs) lost Porsche, its main customer, at the end of September.…

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   Sources: Südkurier (19 Oct, DE) · Mitteldeutsche Zeitung / dpa (16 Oct, DE) · Telemax (19 Oct, IT) · Rete8 (16 Oct, IT)

5. Germany signs a physical-AI pact with NVIDIA to bring industrial AI to the Mittelstand; Siemens shows AI-run factory ramp-ups in Erlangen

   At the first ‘Invest in Germany’ summit in Berlin on 19 Oct, the economy and research ministries signed a joint declaration of intent with NVIDIA to develop advanced AI models for physical AI, meaning AI built into robots and production systems. NVIDIA will widen its work with Germany’s Industry 4.0 platform and make its models available to small and mid-sized firms and research institutes, not only large groups.…

   AI-generated summary · not individually reviewed · check the linked sources

   Sources: tagesschau (19 Oct, DE) · NVIDIA blog (19 Oct)

6. Hyundai and Kia start production at their Ulsan EV plant and show robots that route and fasten wiring harnesses, with humanoid robots in new plants from 2032

   At E-FOREST Tech Day (19–21 Oct, Uiwang), Hyundai and Kia said their new Ulsan EV plant, the group’s first dedicated EV factory in Korea, starts commercial production this month (Electronic Times). They outlined a move to software-defined factories with standard data platforms across Korean and overseas plants, digital twins, AI agents for factory operations and in-house tunnel-type vision inspection. The ‘Polaris’ manufacturing AI has been in pilot at Ulsan since September.…

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   Sources: Hyundai Motor Group (18 Oct) · Electronic Times (19 Oct) · Aju Press (18 Oct)

7. Leapmotor confirms the B05 compact as the second model at Stellantis’ Zaragoza plant, after B10 production started on 16 Oct

   Leapmotor International announced on 19 Oct that it plans to build the B05 at Stellantis’ Figueruelas (Zaragoza) plant, following the official start of B10 production there on 16 Oct. The release gives no start date or volumes. Zaragoza also builds the Opel Corsa, Peugeot 208 and Lancia Ypsilon, and an electric Opel SUV is planned for 2028 (electrive). Earlier regional reporting, covered on 19 Oct, pointed to B05 pre-series in spring 2027; today’s news is the company’s own confirmation.

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   Sources: Stellantis Media / Leapmotor (19 Oct) · electrive (19 Oct)

8. China in Q3: GDP growth slows to 4.5%, consumer spending barely grows, and September vehicle output falls 5.7% while NEV output rises 16.9%

   China’s statistics bureau (NBS) reported Q3 GDP growth of 4.5% year on year (Q1 5.0%, Q2 4.3%) and 1.2% quarter on quarter. Retail sales of consumer goods rose just 1.1% in the first nine months. NBS industrial data show September vehicle output of 3.063m, down 5.7%, with sedans down 23.4% and SUVs up 11.5%. New-energy vehicle output rose 16.9% to 1.870m, and nine-month vehicle output was 23.37m, down 3.7%. (NBS covers large industrial firms, so its figures differ from the CAAM association data covered on 13 Oct.)

   AI-generated summary · not individually reviewed · check the linked sources

   Sources: NBS (19 Oct) · NBS industrial output, September (19 Oct, CN) · Caixin Global (19 Oct)

9. Thailand floods: Toyota and Honda have restarted all Thai car plants after shutdowns of up to two and a half weeks

   Heavy rain at the end of September (more than 320 mm in three days) flooded logistics routes in Chonburi, Rayong, Samut Prakan and Chachoengsao, so suppliers could not deliver just-in-time parts. Honda stopped its Prachin Buri and Ayutthaya plants from 2–6 Oct. Toyota stopped Samrong, Ban Pho, Gateway and the Toyota Auto Works plant, then extended the shutdown with phased restarts on 14 Oct (Samrong), 16 Oct (Gateway) and 19 Oct (Ban Pho).…

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   Sources: Nikkei Asia (20 Oct) · The Nation Thailand (2 Oct) · Bangkok Post (9 Oct)

10. Prysmian closes its $3.8bn Atkore takeover and moves further into US electrical infrastructure

    Prysmian completed the acquisition of Atkore on 19 Oct at $95 per share in cash, an implied enterprise value of about $3.8bn (€3.3bn). Atkore, which makes conduit, cable management and metal framing, is now a wholly owned subsidiary, has delisted from the NYSE and has redeemed its $400m 2031 notes. The combined group has more than 60 US manufacturing and distribution sites. Prysmian targets about $150m of annual pre-tax synergies within three years and will consolidate Atkore from November 2026.

    AI-generated summary · not individually reviewed · check the linked sources

    Sources: Prysmian press release (19 Oct) · Atkore 8-K, SEC (19 Oct)

11. Sumitomo Electric opens a £350m HVDC subsea cable plant at Nigg, Scotland, its new European flagship for grid cables

    Sumitomo Electric, the parent of harness peer Sumitomo Wiring Systems, opened the UK’s first HVDC subsea cable factory at the Port of Nigg on 19 Oct. The £350m plant has 58,000 m² of floor space and will make 525 kV XLPE HVDC subsea transmission cables and inter-array cables for offshore wind. It creates more than 200 direct jobs and more than 400 across the UK supply chain, and the Scottish government contributed £24.5m.…

    AI-generated summary · not individually reviewed · check the linked sources

    Sources: Sumitomo Electric (19 Oct) · BBC News

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