The EV space was seen swathed in a sea of green in the week ending March 18, with stocks rising across the board amid talks between Ukraine and Russia and as the Federal Reserve's rate hike plan played out in line with expectations.
After the recent underperformance, market leader Tesla, Inc. TSLA rebounded with vigor. But the standouts were the Chinese EV stocks that skyrocketed after China relayed its intention to support domestic companies listed overseas.
Here are the key events that happened in the EV space during the week:
Tesla's Price Hikes, Giga Shanghai Closure, Master Plan Part 3: As raw material prices spike in response to the Ukrainian war, it came as no surprise that Tesla went ahead with further price increases. On Monday, the company announced a back-to-back upward price adjustment for all its vehicle models in both China and the U.S. This time around, the price increases were steeper.
Tesla followed it up with a revision to the price of the entry-level version of its Model Y SUV in China on Thursday.
Prominent Tesla bull and Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas had a different take on the price hikes. The analyst sees the actions as reflecting the company's pricing power. He also seemed to suggest that beyond concerns over raw material price inflation, chip shortages would return to haunt Tesla.
In another development, Tesla had to shutter production at its Shanghai plant to adhere to the COVID protocols, which were put in place in the wake of the resurgence of the pandemic in China. It isn't yet known if the disruption will hurt production plans.
Tesla's Elon Musk put out a tweet this week regarding part 3 of a "Master Plan," which sent his followers into a guessing game.
Jonas said in a note that part 3 could be related to "mass industrialization, a network of flywheel and connecting the dots across adjacent total addressable markets."
Ford EV Truck Update, Europe Plans: A leaked window sticker for Ford Motor Company's F F-150 Lightning EV pickup truck revealed that the estimated EPA range and fuel efficiency could be in line with what Dearborn was projecting. The metrics, however, were slightly lower than a rival truck from Rivian Automotive, Inc. RIVN.
Separately, the company announced plans for its EV business in Europe that includes rolling out nine EV models by 2024, complete electrification in Europe by 2035 and a $2 billion investment in Ford's Cologne Engine plant in Germany.
Related Link: Raw Material Shortages May Not Be Hurting Tesla Right Now, But This Other Shortfall Might
Raw Material Cost Inflation Bites XPeng: Chinese EV startup XPeng, Inc. XPEV confirmed that it is hiking prices of its EVs, starting March 21. The action was blamed on the rise in raw material costs. The price hikes will push up pre-subsidy prices of all its vehicles by about 10,100 yuan ($1,588) to 20,000 yuan.
Lucid Hints At Price Hikes For Future Models: Luxury EV sedan maker Lucid Group, Inc.'s LCID CEO Peter Rawlinson reportedly told Reuters that the company is looking at raising prices of future models in response to spiraling nickel prices in the wake of the Ukrainian crisis.
GM Buys Back Stake In Cruise: General Motors Corporation GM announced late Friday that it is buying back SoftBank Group Corp.'s SFTBY stake in its Cruise self-driving unit by paying $2.1 billion. The company also announced a fresh investment of $1.35 billion in the unit, underlining the accent on the automaker's transition to EVs.
Apple Car Rumors Return: Early in the week, Apple, Inc. AAPL analyst Ming-Chi Kuo tweeted that the whole of the Apple Car team has been disbanded. If the team isn't reorganized within three to six months, mass market availability of the car could be pushed back from the 2025 timeline that is currently rumored.
Later, German sports car manufacturer Porsche Automobil Holding SE POAHY tickled Apple Car enthusiasts with its comments on the earnings call that the company has had discussions with the tech giant on "exciting common" projects. Given that no further details were shared, it stirred some excitement, although it is widely believed that the two companies are unlikely to jointly roll out a car.
EV Stock Performances for The Week:
Related Link: 9 EV Market Trends Seeing Accelerating Adoption Amid Ukraine Crisis: Battery Innovation, Inventory Stocking And More
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