1. Global Automotive Sector:

• Europe New Car Registrations (December 2024):
  • 4% YoY increase, marking a slight improvement after four months of decline. However, full-year registrations were nearly flat at 13 million units, 17% below pre-COVID levels (2016-2019).
  • BEV Sales: Flat YoY in December and the full year, with declines in France, Germany, and Italy offset by growth in Spain and the UK.
  • PHEV Sales: Grew 3% YoY in December but fell 4% YoY for the year.
  • HEV Sales: Strengthened, growing 20% in 2024.
  • ICE Sales: Declined 11% YoY in December and 8% YoY for the year, ending with a record-low 39% market share.
• China NEV Sales (January 2025):
  • Passenger NEV sales for the first 19 days of January grew 26% YoY to 423,000 units.
  • Wholesale sales rose 57% YoY to 503,000 units.
  • NEV penetration reached 40.28% despite a 5% decline in overall retail car sales.
• Global Automotive Sensor Market:
  • Projected to grow from $9.3 billion in 2023 to $14.3 billion by 2029, driven by ADAS and electrification trends.
  • LiDAR expected to grow 48% by 2029.
  • ADAS segment projected to generate $8 billion in revenue by 2029, while electrification grows at a slower 3% CAGR.
• Hyundai: Expects revenue growth to slow to 3-4% in 2025, down from 7.7% in 2024, due to softening demand and EV sales.
• Tesla (Canada): Prices for all models will increase in February 2025, with Model 3 rising by up to $6,255, Model Y by $2,965, and Model S/X by $2,965.
• Nissan: Set to reduce production at its Shonan plant in Japan and lay off hundreds of workers as part of its global restructuring.
• US EV Sales (November 2024): Reached 109,000 units, representing 8.3% of the light vehicle market, driven by promotions ahead of the potential removal of the $7,500 tax credit.
• Trump EV Policy Rollback: President Trump reversed the Biden administration’s target for 50% EV sales by 2030, halted the EV charging station program, and proposed ending EV tax credits.

2. Semiconductor Sector:

• GlobalFoundries: Investing $575 million to expand its Malta, New York facility, creating an advanced packaging and photonics center for AI, automotive, aerospace, and defense applications.
  • Received $1.5 billion in federal subsidies, including $75 million for this project.
• Aptiv: Plans to spin off its low-margin Electrical Distribution System (EDS) business by March 2026 to focus on advanced driver assistance technologies.
• TSMC: Reported no significant impact from the 6.4 magnitude earthquake in Taiwan on January 21, 2025, with all facilities functioning normally after inspections.
• u-blox: Phasing out its Cellular operations to focus on GNSS and location technologies for autonomous vehicles and IoT, completing the transition by 2025.
• WT Microelectronics: Reported a 61.3% YoY revenue increase in 2024, driven by recovery in the automotive and industrial sectors and strong AI demand, with projections to surpass $32 billion in 2025.

3. Data Centers and AI Investments:

• Meta (2025 Capex): Plans to spend $60-65 billion, significantly up from $38-40 billion in 2024, focusing on AI infrastructure, including 1.3 million Nvidia GPUs for AI development.
• ByteDance: Announced a $12 billion AI infrastructure investment in 2025, with $5.5 billion allocated to AI chips in China and $6.8 billion internationally.
• China AI Fund: Launched an $8.2 billion investment fund to boost AI self-sufficiency in response to US tech restrictions.

4. Government and Policy Impact:

• EU EV Policy: The EU plans to introduce bloc-wide EV subsidies to support the auto industry, with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz backing harmonized incentives, even as the US takes a different approach.
• Trump Tariffs: President Trump is considering imposing 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico over concerns like immigration and fentanyl trafficking. He also proposed 10% tariffs on all Chinese imports starting February 1, 2025.
  • Taiwanese manufacturers like Quanta, Foxconn, and Asus are rapidly expanding their US production capacity in response.

5. Consumer Electronics:

• China Subsidy Program (January 2025): Offering a 15% discount on phones, tablets, and smartwatches priced below $825 to boost sales amid sluggish economic conditions.
  • Apple and Huawei have reduced prices on select models, with the iPhone 16 Plus 128GB dropping from $961 to $825 to qualify for the subsidy.
• Global Smartphone Market (2024): Grew 4% YoY after two years of decline, driven by improved consumer sentiment.
  • Samsung: Led the market with strong S24 series demand.
  • Xiaomi: Fastest-growing among the top five brands, with its SU7 sedan outselling Tesla’s Model 3 in China.

6. Industrial Developments:

• Japan Core Machinery Orders (November 2024): Rose 3.4% MoM, exceeding forecasts of a 0.4% decline, driven by labor shortage and digitalization investments.
• Aerospace Industry: Potential US tariffs could disrupt the sector, affecting Canadian suppliers like Optima Aero, which risks losing 6% of its annual revenue.