Ford, GM Expected To Announce New Electric-Vehicle Targets Today At The White House

A host of U.S. automakers including General Motors Co GM and Ford Motor Co F will aim to make electric vehicles account for 40% to 50% of their U.S. sales by 2030, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

What Happened: The White House is expected to announce the targets on Thursday along with individual announcements from automakers regarding sales targets for electric vehicles.

The automotive industry is also expecting the White House to announce fuel target rules that will mandate a 3.7% annual increase in fuel efficiency for the next two years. 

Why It Matters: Electric vehicles sales make up just under 3% of the total U.S. auto sales but legacy automakers are doubling down on investments and efforts to make the switch from internal combustion engines to battery-powered vehicles. 

With Elon Musk-led Tesla Inc TSLA playing the disruptor, the big players are catching up, and in recent months, have launched the electric variants of their best-selling trucks and sports utility vehicles. 

See Also: GM Confirms It's Working On A Third Electric Pickup And It Will Be A Full-Size Truck

What Are GM, Ford EV Targets? Ford had in May said it expects 40% of its car sales to be only electric vehicles by 2030 and is spending $30 billion by 2025 under a new turnaround plan towards that goal. 

Bigger rival GM has a more ambitious target and has previously said it will launch 30 all-electric models globally by 2025 and expects 40% of the company’s U.S. entries to be battery electric vehicles by the end of 2025.

Price Action: GM, which reported earnings earlier in the day, closed 8.91% lower at $52.72 on Wednesday. Ford shares closed 4.99% lower at $13.32.

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Photo: Courtesy Of Ford