Fuel For Thought

Kristen Balasia, Mike Wall and Bjoern Huetter talk about supply chain challenges and electrification trends, and review the rocky recovery as we progress through the second year of the pandemic.

Kristen Balasia, Amber Daniel and our special guest, Giancarlo Montenegro; Director of Social at Reunion Marketing talk about the changing consumers experience, specifically how much driving dealer actions and ad spent, and how to best engage the consumers in the tight market.

Kristen Balasia, Vijay Subramanian and James Martin talk about automotive electrification, regulation, and transportation decarbonization toward net-zero ambitions.

Kristen Balasia, Mark Fulthorpe and Phil Amsrud talk about the tight supply of semiconductors, and various disruptions to non-automotive markets which is also impacting the automotive sector.

Kristen Balasia, Thomas Libby, Ian McIlravey and our special guest Michelle Denogean; CMO at Roadster, talk about the changing retail model and consumer behaviors accelerated by COVID-19 lockdown.

Thomas Libby and Kristen Balasia talk about the importance of loyalty in the automotive industry.

Tim Armstrong, Tom De Vleesschauwer and Kristen Balasia talk about IHS Markit's CERAWeek which is widely considered to be the most prestigious annual gathering of the global energy community.

Bjoern Huetter, Ali Khalili and Kristen Balasia talk about 2020 year in review around the globe; an unprecedented year for the automotive industry.

Kristen Balasia, Mark Boyadjis and Brian Rhodes talk about the future of technology and CES 2021 virtual event roundup.

IHS Markit projects new light vehicle sales of 83.4 million units globally in 2021, up 9% from a 2020 projection of 76.5 million units, as industry demand levels emerge next year in the wake of recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic – especially in major markets. Looking at the U.S. auto demand environment, the sequential rise in sales levels from the April 2020 trough reflects that consumers that we...

Part suppliers have their hands full these days. After surviving more than two months of virtually no vehicle output earlier this spring – production in North America has been on a tear. Total North American output should reach 13 million light vehicles – a remarkable achievement. Consumers have re-engaged into the market - now finding that inventory of several popular vehicles to be slimmer than...

Electric vehicle production and platform announcements continue to pepper the landscape. EV development has been underway in earnest, and we are at the edges of an explosion in production as a result. IHS Markit forecasts EV global production could rise to 15% of total light-vehicle production in 2027, bringing a wave of new products. With this next phase of EV maturation, development has been foc...

Kristen Balasia, Peter Nagle and Mark Fulthorpe talk about automotive 2021 outlook, diving into the positive influences and uncertainties, and what we can expect in 2021.

As the automotive industry looks to recover lost revenues from the global COVID-19 pandemic, the growing demand for high-tech, shared mobility solutions has become a focal point. Within major markets, IHS Markit forecasts a steady 18 percent compound annual growth rate on vehicle sales for mobility services use in the next 10 years, adding 2.6 million units by 2030. In contrast, vehicle sales for...

Kristen Balasia, Mike Wall and Sandra Zhou talk about China; the auto industry gets a lift from Chinese consumers and regulators driving growth even as a surge in COVID-19 cases in the US and Europe tempers demand elsewhere.

Investment in electric vehicle manufacturing has been in the news lately, with announcements from General Motors, Ford and FCA, as well as Volkswagen's introduction of the ID.4 which will see production in the US. Daimler, BMW and Honda are also expected to add US EV production by the end of the decade. In 2026, IHS Markit forecasts that about 10% of US light-vehicle production will be electric ve...

There is a clear focus on new revenue sources in the automotive industry, as mobility, electrification, autonomy, and connectivity continue to democratize for a post-COVID world. Connected services are one way automakers can grow revenues, yet many still see it as a cost, not a profit center. In many cases, automakers see paltry renewal rates from 15-30% post trial, which is neither sustainable no...

October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month! Connected cars provide ample motivation to implement cybersecurity measures. But the expansion of automated driving gives further reason for safeguarding the vehicle. IHS Markit forecasts that more than half of all new vehicle sales globally in 2022 will have some automated vehicle control feature. In recognition of these growing risks, automakers...

A Closer Look at One SUV Category The sub-compact SUV category is one of the smaller SUV segments, based on market share, but it has contributed to the remarkable success of SUVs in general. Sub-compact SUVs' share of the U.S. market has grown from 3.4% at the start of 2016 to 4.6% now, and while this may not seem like much, it's a 34 percent increase – which ranks second among all mainstream SUV...

Melanie Erff, Mike Wall and Tanja Linken talk about how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the global automotive retail with respect to challenges faced by dealerships and customers' expectation in their purchase process and future interactions.

The automotive industry has been working at a fever pitch since late May when we emerged from the COVID-19 driven output closures. The combination of depleted vehicle inventories and a strong sales pace has equated to the industry's inability to return to normal inventory levels until early next year. Even with a 2-month break, we will still build approximately 13 million light vehicles in North A...

A recent analysis of IHS Markit new light vehicle registrations through July this year finds sport utilities account for 50% of all new vehicle registrations, up from 31% ten years ago. If today's mix continues for the remainder of this year, it would mark the first time in recent history that one body style has captured half of the U.S. new vehicle industry. Market share for mainstream pickups ha...

So you're looking to purchase a new car in the state of California in 2035? Well, you can have any powertrain you want, as long as it's electric! California Governor Gavin Newson signed an executive order setting a goal of requiring all new passenger cars and trucks sold in the state to be zero-emission vehicles, which are battery electric or fuel cell, by 2035. Now all of this comes as California...

US-based NVIDIA announces intent to acquire UK-based Arm for $40B. You may not know Arm by name, but the company's intellectual property is shipped in tens of billions of integrated circuits every year. In automotive, four out of every five processors in infotainment and driver assistance are based on Arm architectures—including those from NVIDIA. Both Arm and NVIDIA have long lists of ecosystem p...

Kristen Balasia, Anoop Desai and Thomas Libby talk about how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted global emissions and fuel regulations, and how regional markets and manufacturers respond to this.