All Policy and regulation articles – Page 33
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FeatureJLR to move Discovery assembly to Slovakia
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has announced it will move assembly of the Land Rover Discovery from its Solihull plant in the UK’s West Midlands to its soon-to-be-opened plant in Nitra, Slovakia.The move will mean job losses at the UK plant, as announced in April this year, but the carmaker said ...
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FeatureVW resumes production after haulage strikes
Volkswagen’s bus and truck plant at Resende, in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro, is reported to be back to normal production, following a week of strikes in the road haulage industry at the end of May.A spokesperson for the company said it was now working with its 4,000-strong ...
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FeatureUzbek government to buy GM’s stake in joint venture
Uzbek state-owned vehicle-maker, UzAvtosanoat, is looking to buy GM’s remaining 10% stake in the joint venture it has with the US carmaker – GM Uzbekistan.The buyout is expected to be complete by the end of the year and follows UzAvtosanoat increasing its original 75% stake in the joint venture to ...
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FeatureAutomotive in the firing line as Trump extends tariffs
Cars and automotive parts are becoming enmeshed in intensifying global trade wars, with the automotive sector facing increased shipping, supply, manufacturing and cost uncertainty for some time to come.The catalyst has been the US president imposing import tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminium, two key input materials ...
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FeatureNew Russian association to encourage a slicker supply chain
A group of Russian state-owned and private companies has formed a body called the Digital Transport and Logistics Association (DTLA), reported to be the biggest such association to have existed in the Russian transport industry and tasked with establishing a joined up supply chain supported by the latest digital technology.The ...
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FeaturePSA suspends joint venture activity in Iran
French carmaker Groupe PSA has said this week that it is suspending all joint venture activity in Iran, following the withdrawal of the US government from the Iran nuclear deal, otherwise known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).The JCPOA was signed on July 14 2015 between Iran, the ...
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FeatureDriving value into the supply chain
Better communication is needed in the automotive supply chain, including between OEMs, suppliers, logistics providers and IT experts providing digital supply chain services. Digital technology has a lot of answers for an industry that is making strides in addressing the needs of modern manufacturing and the changing face of mobility, ...
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FeatureVehicle imports to Russia increase in the first quarter
Russia imported almost 67,000 finished vehicles during the first quarter 2018, up by just under 50% compared to the same period last year, according to a statement from the country’s Federal Customs Service. Imports over the period were equal to $1.65 billion.It is the first time in a decade that ...
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FeatureChina cuts import tariffs on vehicles and parts
China’s Ministry of Finance has announced that import duty on foreign-made cars will fall from 25% to 15% with effect from July 1, with tariffs on automotive parts dropping from around 10% to 6%.The move delivers on a promise by China’s president Xi Jinping last month that the country would ...
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FeatureYazaki given record fine over cartel conduct
Japanese parts supplier Yazaki has been ordered to pay an increased penalty of A$46m ($34.5m) by Australia’s federal court in respect of cartel conduct in the supply of wire harnesses used in the manufacture of the Toyota Camry.The decision follows an appeal by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC), ...
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FeatureSweet home Alabama
One of the most popular songs about the US state of Alabama, ‘Sweet Home Alabama’, opens with the line “Big wheels keep on turning” – and indeed the number doing so is set to grow after the January announcement that a $1.6 billion Toyota-Mazda joint-venture manufacturing plant is scheduled to ...
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FeatureMBUSI: In a state of contentment
Why has Alabama become such a mecca for automotive manufacturing?I think there are a number of reasons. You have seen the automotive industry continue to push further south into areas where there is a good workforce available. You have infrastructure that is available. The supplier network has continued to migrate ...
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FeatureClark seeks to reassure automotive sector on Brexit
British business minister Greg Clark (pictured) has suggested the UK government wants to avoid any new trade friction over the processing and transporting of automotive products with the European Union after Brexit, despite open disagreement among cabinet ministers over what sort of customs arrangement should be put in place. Clark, ...
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FeatureRussia ends era of industrial agreements
Russia is scrapping its Regulation 166 agreement, which allows foreign carmakers building cars in the country to import parts at preferential rates of customs duty. According to the country’s Ministry of Economic Development, the industrial agreement regime will cease on July 1 this year.In a statement posted on its website, ...
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FeatureRussia: Recovery still down the road
Sales of finished vehicles in Russia rose 11.9% in 2017 over the previous year to reach 1.59m units, according to estimates in early January by the Association of European Businesses (AEB). Russia’s long-awaited recovery began in March and gained momentum throughout the year, peaking in December with monthly sales of ...
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FeatureRussia moves to boost domestic EV market
Russia has announced a series of support measures to boost domestic sales of electric vehicles (EVs) from fewer than 100 units in 2017 to nearly 100,000 units by 2025 – or 4-5% of overall vehicle sales.According to the federal government’s national strategy for automotive development in Russia, up to 90% ...
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FeatureAudi México: Risk and reward
When Audi opened its assembly plant in Mexico in September 2016, it was a milestone achievement on a number of levels. It was the first factory the German carmaker had set up outside Europe and the first that it was exclusively managing overseas (the two factories in China are joint ...
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FeatureGaz Group faces halt in assembly
Gaz Group is reported to have said that it may have to cease vehicle assembly in Russia in June because of recently imposed US sanctions that have blocked the import of automotive components from the US, Germany and the Czech Republic.The OEM’s production and export operations have been in doubt ...
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FeatureCar hauliers suspend services at Renault-Nissan’s Chennai plant
Car carriers providing outbound distribution services for Renault-Nissan in India suspended their operations at the carmaker’s plant in Chennai last week in protest at what they say was the OEM’s decision to renege on agreed freight rates.According to the Car Carrier Association (CCA), the dispute dates back to meetings Renault-Nissan ...
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FeatureWaking up to a new dawn
Brazilian vehicle manufacturers are increasingly optimistic that the country can claw its way out of a deep recession. The country is experiencing a period of low inflation, low interest rates, light GDP growth and a tentative recovery in employment, reflected in improving purchasing power and consumer confidence. Moreover, consumers with ...