Edgewater Research: Electronics Weekly Digest

Data Point of the Week:

• China's Light Vehicle Production: According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), China's light vehicle production and sales continued their strong performance in October. The production and sales remained steady month-over-month at approximately 2.5 million units.
• Commercial Vehicles: Production of commercial vehicles increased by 7% month-over-month and 43% year-over-year, reaching 380,000 units - the highest since December 2021. However, sales saw a slight decrease of 2% month-over-month.
• New Energy Vehicles (NEVs): NEV production rose by 12.5% to 989,000 units, setting a new record and showing significant growth both year-over-year and month-over-month.
• Vehicle Exports: Exports of vehicles from China, including 124,000 NEVs, also showed strong growth, increasing by 10% month-over-month and 42% year-over-year to 488,000 units.

Automotive Industry Highlights:

• BYD: Plans to build its first European factory in Hungary.
• China Retail Auto Sales: Reported a 10% year-over-year increase in October, with NEV sales up by 3% month-over-month.
• Neo, Li Auto, and Xpeng: Have provided bullish production forecasts for 2024, expecting a 50-100% increase.
• Continental: Raised its 2023 auto production outlook but cautioned about slower growth in 2024.
• Germany Car Sales: Remain subdued despite a minor month-over-month rebound in xEVs.
• Lucid: Announced price cuts for its luxury sedan vehicles.
• Polestar: Trimmed its 2023 EV production forecast, citing slowing EV demand.
• Tesla: Plans to produce €25,000 cars in Germany for the European market and has raised prices for the Model Y in China.
• UK and US Car Sales: Both showed increases in October, with new vehicle inventory in the US also rising.

Other Sectors:

• Datacenter/Telco: Siemens announced a $150 million investment in a new US manufacturing plant.
• IP&E: Murata is establishing a new R&D center in Japan, and Molex is expanding in Poland.
• Semiconductors: Baidu places AI chip orders with Huawei, and Intel leads in secure defense-chip facilities.
• Consumer/EMS/Distribution: Notable developments include price wars during Chinese shopping festivals and a surge in 3Q23 smartphone AP shipments.