Automotive and business brief

Snapshot

• Mercedes-Benz plans to cut “several thousand” temporary workers in Germany as part of its €800m-a-year productivity drive
• German metal and electrical pay talks: second round runs 27–30 Oct, the peace obligation ends 31 Oct, and employers float a pay freeze while 42% of firms expect job cuts
• Tata Motors’ €3.9bn tender for Iveco closes today with only 35% tendered against an 80% threshold; Tata calls €14.40 its final price

Top Developments

1. Mercedes-Benz plans to cut “several thousand” temporary workers in Germany as part of its €800m-a-year productivity drive

   Handelsblatt reported on 23 Oct, citing company sources, that Mercedes will reduce agency and temporary staff in Germany. About 3,000 temporary workers are employed at the Sindelfingen, Bremen and Rastatt vehicle plants; no exact number or timing has been given. A spokeswoman declined to comment on specifics but said temporary staff supplement rather than replace the core workforce.…

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   Sources: dpa via Yahoo Finance (23 Oct) · dpa via finanznachrichten (23 Oct, DE) · stern.de (23 Oct, DE)

2. German metal and electrical pay talks: second round runs 27–30 Oct, the peace obligation ends 31 Oct, and employers float a pay freeze while 42% of firms expect job cuts

   IG Metall is asking for 5% for 12 months for about 3.7 million workers. Second-round negotiations take place region by region between 27 and 30 Oct, and warning strikes become possible from 1 Nov when the peace obligation expires. Employers have floated a zero round and longer working hours without extra pay. A Gesamtmetall survey of 1,461 member companies (7–16 Oct) found 42% expect to cut jobs in the next six months and 39% call their business situation bad.…

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   Sources: IG Metall bargaining page · IG Metall Zwickau (23 Oct, DE) · ad-hoc-news (25 Oct, DE)

3. Tata Motors’ €3.9bn tender for Iveco closes today with only 35% tendered against an 80% threshold; Tata calls €14.40 its final price

   As of 22 Oct only about 35.0% of Iveco shares had been tendered. The offer needs 80%. Tata says €14.40 a share is final and it will not raise the bid. Petrus Advisers, Davidson Kempner and Syquant together hold about 20.4%; Petrus says fair value is about €18. Italy’s industry minister Adolfo Urso wants safeguards for Italian sites, and Iveco has outlined more than €76m of investment in four Italian plants. Settlement is planned for 30 Oct, with a possible reopening window on 2–6 Nov.…

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   Sources: Hindu BusinessLine (25 Oct) · Economic Times · MarketScreener · The Hindu

4. Japanese carmakers race to cut development times toward Chinese speed: Nissan to about 3 years with 70% fewer part types, Honda targets half the cost and time

   Kyodo reported on 25 Oct that Nissan’s family-based development puts a new North American SUV due in 2028 at 3 years 1 month; derivatives drop by up to 40% to about 2.5 years, the approach covers 80% of sales, and part types fall by 70%. Honda’s “Triple Half” programme aims to halve cost, time and workload versus 2025 for models whose development starts in 2028, using AI. Toyota’s “Area 35” targets 35% better use of plant floor space.…

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   Sources: Kyodo News (25 Oct) · The Straits Times

5. BYD says it will build more European plants “soon” to get around tariffs; Szeged mass production starts this quarter

   BYD vice-president Liu Xueliang told the South China Morning Post on 25 Oct that the company will build new factories in Europe soon and “will not let tariff increases affect local consumers’ choice.” The Szeged plant in Hungary starts mass production in Q4 2026, beginning with the Dolphin Surf, with capacity of about 150,000 cars a year. Earlier in October BYD said it was considering France and Spain for a further plant.

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   Sources: South China Morning Post (25 Oct) · Economx (13 Oct, HU) · Hungary Today

6. Hyundai and Kia face pressure to localise parts in Europe under the planned 70% EU-content rule, which excludes Korea and Türkiye

   MoneyToday reported on 22 Oct that the Franco-German Industrial Accelerator Act plan would require 70% of parts value, excluding batteries, to come from Europe. Korea and Türkiye are not counted, putting the Ioniq 3 built in Izmit, Türkiye at risk of losing eligibility. Hyundai Mobis’s plant in Nováky, Slovakia already makes about 280,000 EV drive systems a year. Hyundai targets 420,000 European EV sales by 2030 and Kia a 66% EV share.

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   Sources: MoneyToday (22 Oct) · Hyundai Motor Group (Mobis Slovakia plant)

7. South Africa will stop supporting new semi-knockdown assembly, tighten CKD rules and lift its local-content target to 60% by 2035

   Bloomberg reported (via Moneyweb, 16 Oct) that under the review of the Automotive Production and Development Programme (APDP2) the government will give no policy support to new semi-knockdown (SKD) assembly, tighten the definition of complete-knockdown (CKD) assembly, and investigate the ladder-frame pick-up segment. The local-content target rises from 38% to 60% by 2035. Government news agency SAnews confirmed the SKD review.

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   Sources: Moneyweb / Bloomberg (16 Oct) · SAnews (government) · CNBC Africa

8. Chinese carmakers line up idle Western plants: Chery’s Omoda Jaecoo in talks for JLR’s halted Brazilian plant, and Nissan Ávila in Spain talks to two Asian automotive firms

   AutoData reported on 23 Oct that JLR’s Itatiaia plant in Brazil (capacity about 25,000 a year, roughly 400 staff) remains stopped, with the Discovery Sport ending globally at year-end; Chery’s Omoda Jaecoo has confirmed talks to take it over.…

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   Sources: AutoData (23 Oct, PT) · Cadena SER / EFE (23 Oct, ES)

9. CATL and Chery set up a second battery joint venture in Wuhu with ¥1bn of capital

   Gasgoo’s weekly round-up (25 Oct) reports that CATL Chery (Wuhu) New Energy was registered on 20 Oct with registered capital of ¥1bn, the second battery JV between the two companies. Chery is one of the most export-focused Chinese carmakers and is preparing European assembly in Barcelona.

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   Sources: Gasgoo weekly (25 Oct)

10. Aumovio wins its first China nomination for a third-generation satellite camera from a leading domestic carmaker

    Gasgoo reports (25 Oct) that Aumovio, the former Continental automotive business, has won its first nomination in China for its third-generation satellite camera from a leading Chinese carmaker, with production due to start at the end of 2027.

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    Sources: Gasgoo weekly (25 Oct)

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Market data: TradingView, Yahoo Finance (delayed). Not investment advice.