Auto Retail Agenda: 5 September 2022
04 September 2022
- LIZ TRUSS TO SEEK ECONOMIC ADVICE
- JLR TO HALT PRODUCTION
- AUTO RETAIL LIVE ON RECESSION
- BUICK RETAILER BUYOUTS
- TESLA SEEKS TO OVERTURN DIRECT SALES BAN
- STOCKWATCH
- COMING UP: SMMT August new car registrations
- UK TO ENTER RECESSION THIS YEAR
- GAS PRICES MAY SURGE 50%
- ECB IN ‘LARGEST RATE RISE’
Liz Truss to seek economic advice
Expected new PM Liz Truss says she will take immediate action to tackle the cost of living for families and business. Within the first week, she has vowed to set out plans, with a fiscal event to follow later in September.
“I am ready to take the tough decisions to rebuild our economy,” she said.
JLR to halt production
Jaguar Land Rover is to halt production and send employees home due to the ongoing semiconductor crisis. Stoppages will last until the end of the month. There are reports of waiting times of more than a year for the acclaimed new Range Rover; the firm is said to be sitting on an order back of more than 200,000 vehicles.
Auto Retail Live on recession strategies
New car supply is short. But a recession is forecast. Hear Marunbei’s Jason Cranswick, Devonshire Motors’ Nathan Tomlinson and Auto Trader’s Marc Palmer discuss and answer your questions on the best ways react.
Auto Retail Live on 13 September will help you how to get the most of the latter half of 2022 and hit your targets. Sign up here: https://bit.ly/3K4ZRa1
WORLD NEWS
Buick retailer buyouts
All of Buick’s near-2,000 US retailers are being offered the chance to walk away with a buyout if they don’t want make the necessary investments to sell EVs.
Former Vauxhall MD and now Buick president Duncan Aldred outlined the offer on Friday. “If they want to exit the Buick franchise, we will give them the monetary assistance to do so.”. Buick will not introduce any new internal combustion cars after 2024.
Support amongst the Buick dealer council for the program is said to be unanimous.
Tesla seeks to overturn direct sales ban
Tesla has filed another lawsuit to overturn a state ban on direct sales. It says the Louisiana refusal is “protectionist and anti-competitive”. Many states have banned direct sales as they bypass traditional retailers. The OEM accused Louisiana retailers and their dealer association of an ”unlawful conspiracy to bar Tesla from doing business”.
STOCKWATCH
Closing prices on 2 September 2022 and weekly change
Auto Trader Group 647.4p (-3.2p / -0.4%)
Caffyns 550.0p (n/c)
Halfords 132.7p (+8.0p / +6.2%)
Inchcape 749.0p (+22.0p / -2.8%)
Lookers 79.5p (-2.9p / -3.5%)
Motorpoint 195.25p (-0.5p / -0.2%)
Pendragon 21.5p (-0.8p / -3.6%)
Vertu 47.8p (-2.5p / -5.0%)
COMING UP
Monday, SMMT August new car registrations
Wednesday, Halfords AGM
Wednesday, Halifax house price index
13 September, Auto Retail Live business briefing – sign up now
MONEY MATTERS
UK to enter recession this year
The British Chambers of Commerce forecasts the UK will officially enter recession before the end of the year. “The extreme inflationary pressures already present are only likely to increase as we head towards Christmas,” said the BCC. It added the UK economy is already thought to be in recession.
BCC plans for business aid include a Government Emergency Energy grant and a temporary cut in VAT on energy bills to 5%.
Gas prices may surge 50%
Gas prices may surge by 50% today (Monday 5 September) after Russia turned off supplies to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. Experts say this could see factories cut production and switch to night-time shifts – and energy-intensive industries, such as automotive, will be particularly badly affected.
ECB in ‘largest rate rise’
The European Central Bank may deliver its largest rate rise in history on Thursday. Experts say it will raise all three of its key interest rates by 0.75%. The ECB will also raise its inflation forecasts and cut growth projections.
Tags:
Auto Retail Live, Buick, buyouts, direct sales, energy, gas prices, Jason Cranswick, JLR, Liz Truss, Marc Palmer, Nathan Tomlinson, recession, SMMT, Tesla 
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