OEM TrendKeji (Fast Tech): Richard Yu recently announced that the AITO M9 has hit a new milestone more than two years since its launch: cumulative deliveries across all models have topped 300,000 units. Meanwhile, the new-generation AITO M9 surpassed 10,000 deliveries in just three weeks, setting a record for the fastest to reach that mark in the 500,000-yuan price segment.Jiemian News: XPENG Group and Zuche recently held a ceremony in Beijing to mark their comprehensive partnership and vehicle handover. He Xiaopeng, Chairman and CEO of XPENG, and Yu Hongfei, Chairman of Zuche, attended the event to witness the signing of a full-scene cooperation agreement and the batch delivery of 1,300 new-energy vehicles. To date, Zuche has purchased over 5,000 XPENG new-energy vehicles and plans to acquire at least 5,000 more within the next year.Keji (Fast Tech): Chery Automobile has officially launched operations at its Rosslyn plant in Pretoria, South Africa. It is the first wholly-owned vehicle manufacturing plant by a Chinese automaker on the African continent, marking Chery's transformation from a market importer to a local manufacturer. Chery reached an asset purchase agreement with Nissan for the plant in January 2026, with the deal closing mid-year. The facility will produce a range of models including internal combustion, hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and pure electric vehicles, with production lines supporting flexible manufacturing. Chery aims to achieve a 40% parts localization rate by 2028, with products supplying the South African market, the broader African continent, and Europe.Jiemian News: Faraday Future issued a statement recently noting it had become aware of false information circulating on some online platforms claiming its 'Los Angeles headquarters is empty.' The company clarified that its Hanford factory remains open and that the move involves the normal relocation of its global headquarters to Silicon Beach in El Segundo. The video circulating online shows FF's former headquarters in Gardena, which the company vacated at the end of March. Claims that the LA headquarters has been abandoned are seriously misleading and constitute a malicious distortion of the normal office relocation.Keji (Fast Tech): Rumors are circulating that FAW-Audi Sales Co. is set for another leadership change on the Chinese side. Guo Yongfeng, who became executive deputy general manager on September 1, 2025, will reportedly be removed after just ten months and replaced by Dou Huijuan. The news quickly trended on Weibo. However, an insider at FAW-Audi told media that the report of a leadership change is untrue; Guo Yongfeng remains the executive deputy general manager of FAW-Audi Sales Co.IT Home: Toyota plans to standardize technical terminology across its planning, production, and sales departments, cutting 30% of intermediate processes to speed up vehicle production. The automaker is building an integrated system covering the entire chain from planning to sales, aiming for cross-departmental project coordination by 2028. This central control system will utilize AI to consolidate 45,000 specialized terms scattered across departments into 5,000 common standard terms, significantly lowering the barrier to understanding specifications and eliminating the need for inter-departmental translation.Supply Chain NewsIT Home: Samsung SDI will invest a total of 25 trillion won in its Ulsan and Cheonan production bases to expand capacity for next-generation batteries. The investment cycle spans 14 years, with funding continuing through 2040.Gasgoo: Phinia, a diversified industrial supplier and global leader in fuel systems, electrical systems, and aftermarket solutions, announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of stoba Group, a global technology partner for high-precision components, systems, and customized manufacturing solutions. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.Industrial EconomyIT Home: Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), recently released data showing that sales of Chinese self-owned brands in overseas markets reached 440,000 units in May 2026, a 60% year-on-year increase. From January to May, sales totaled 1.96 million units, also up 60% from the previous year.Keji (Fast Tech): According to preliminary statistics from the CPCA, retail sales in the national passenger car market from June 1 to 30 totaled 1.651 million units, a 21% drop from the same period last year but a 9% increase from the previous month. Year-to-date retail sales reached 8.75 million units, a 20% decline. During the same period, automakers' wholesale sales totaled 2.376 million units, down 4% year-on-year but up 7% month-on-month. Cumulative wholesale sales for the year stood at 12.562 million units, a 5% decrease.Cailian Press: A recent report by CITIC Securities indicates that the average price of praseodymium-neodymium oxide was 731,000 yuan per ton in the first half of 2026, surging 73.6% year-on-year. On the supply side, imports and recycling volumes have dropped significantly, while stricter domestic rare earth management policies have kept industry supply tight. On the demand side, production of new-energy vehicles and robots has increased month-on-month, export orders are growing strongly, and the mass production of Tesla robots is imminent — all suggesting that rare earth demand will continue its upward trend. Given the supply-demand dynamics, the global rare earth supply gap is expected to widen starting in 2026, providing long-term support for prices. The report recommends the strategic value of the rare earth industrial chain.Keji (Fast Tech): Surging fuel costs are driving a surge in electric vehicle sales in Australia. The Electric Vehicle Council reported that EVs accounted for 35.8% of new passenger car sales in June, with the Tesla Model Y becoming the country's best-selling vehicle. Battery electric vehicles made up a quarter of all car sales that month. The council noted that the Tesla Model Y hit a record 8,072 units sold in June, overtaking the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux.Policy SituationJiemian News: The Ministry of Finance, the State Taxation Administration, and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued an announcement regarding adjustments to vehicle and vessel tax incentives for energy-saving and new-energy vehicles: Effective January 1, 2027, the policy of halving the vehicle and vessel tax for energy-saving vehicles will be abolished, as will the tax exemption for pure electric commercial vehicles, plug-in hybrid (including extended-range) vehicles, and fuel cell commercial vehicles. Taxpayers who acquire these types of vehicles—whether newly purchased or owned prior to this announcement—will be subject to vehicle and vessel tax in accordance with the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law and its implementing regulations.Keji (Fast Tech): On July 5, Hainan Province released its industrial development plan, outlining a steady and orderly path toward a comprehensive ban on fuel vehicle sales by 2030. The province aims for a gradual increase in new-energy vehicle adoption rather than aggressive measures. The plan sets several quantitative targets: the share of new-energy vehicles in Hainan's total ownership is to reach 23.75% by 2025 and rise to 45% by 2030. Non-fossil fuel energy consumption is targeted at 20.9% in 2024, striving for 35% by 2030. By 2030, excluding special-purpose vehicles, 100% of new and replacement vehicles in public services and social operations will use clean energy, and 100% of new and replacement private vehicles will be new-energy vehicles. The ratio of vehicles to charging piles across the province will be maintained below 2.5:1.
