Hyundai believes electric-car battery prices will stop falling by 2020

2017 Hyundai Ioniq Electric (European spec), 2016 Geneva Motor ShowThe automotive business is one that turns raw materials into highly complex finished goods. When the prices of key commodities—especially raw materials—rise, everything downstream in that process becomes more expensive. That's Hyundai's concern over battery prices from 2020 onward, as it envisions a future in which a constrained supply...

Toyota, Panasonic agree to study prismatic battery cells for electric cars

Akio Toyoda, President, Toyota and Kazuhiro Tsuga, President, Panasonic For the 20 years since the introduction of the Prius, Toyota has enjoyed the first-mover advantage in hybrid cars, and leveraged those green credentials to boost public perception of its brand as a whole. But Toyota has yet to mass-market a battery-electric vehicle in the U.S., as Nissan has done with the Leaf. Toyota executives have consistently...

Why China will beat U.S. in electric-car battle: urgency, regulations

2016 BYD Tang plug-in hybrid SUV, made in ChinaAs the electric-vehicle market matures and more global automakers commit to building battery-powered cars, one driving force has emerged to lead the pack. With apologies to the title of a comedy from half a century ago ... The Chinese Are Coming. That's the assertion made by old China hand Michael Dunne, of Dunne Consulting in Hong Kong, who makes...