Asian Equities Traded in the US as American Depositary Receipts Edge Up in Wednesday Trading

Sharp has revealed an innovative electric vehicle prototype, the LDK+, developed in collaboration with its parent company Foxconn . The announcement was made on Tuesday during Sharp Tech-Day in Tokyo.

What Happened: The LDK+ concept car integrates the functionality of a traditional vehicle with a room-like interior, aiming to provide a new style of mobility. Sharp’s Chief Technical Officer, Mototaka Taneya, emphasized the growing importance of cars as personal spaces, especially with the advent of autonomous driving technology, Nikkei Asia reported on Wednesday.

Sharp’s design allows the vehicle’s interior to be used effectively even when parked, transforming it into a personal space for work or leisure. Features include a rotatable rear seat, a Sharp LCD display, and windows that can turn opaque for privacy. The car also uses AI to adjust air conditioning and lighting based on user preferences.

See Also: SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Says Canadian Government Is Funding Starlink Rival For Satellite Internet Despite His Offer To Do It For ‘Less Than Half That Amount’ As It Wants Its ‘Own System’

The LDK+ is built on an EV platform developed by Foxconn, which has been focusing on the EV market. Foxconn’s Chief Strategy Officer for EVs, Jun Seki, highlighted the cost-efficiency of this modular approach, allowing companies to create unique models without heavy investments.

Sharp’s entry into the EV market comes amid industry challenges, with growth slowing and automakers adjusting their strategies. Despite these hurdles, Seki expressed optimism about the future of EVs, predicting significant market growth by 2027.

Why It Matters: The collaboration between Foxconn and Sharp represents a significant step in the evolving electric vehicle market. Foxconn, a major supplier for Apple Inc. , has been making strategic moves to diversify its portfolio and enter the EV sector. In May 2022, Foxconn’s chairman, Liu Young-way, expressed confidence in overcoming supply chain challenges and aimed to become the first EV maker not affected by material shortages. This ambition aligns with their broader strategy to compete with established EV manufacturers like Tesla Inc. and Nio Inc. .

Furthermore, Foxconn’s recent approval to invest $246 million in Northern Vietnam for manufacturing EV parts underscores their commitment to this market. The investment will focus on producing EV chargers and components, starting in January 2025. This move is expected to enhance Foxconn’s production capabilities and support its goal of becoming a key player in the EV industry.

Read Next:

• Ford To Roll Out Limited Edition Street Legal Race Car Variant Of Mustang As Early As This Year

Photo by askarim on Shutterstock

This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Pooja Rajkumari

© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Chinese electric vehicle stocks XPeng Inc , Li Auto Inc , ZEEKR Intelligent Technology Holding , and NIO Inc are trading higher Tuesday after a Monday report indicated that the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) looks to slash the bank reserve requirement ratio (RRR) by 50 bps, followed by another half-point cut in the first half of 2025.

However, the Chinese EV industry is battling multiple protectionist policies from international regulators. Last week, the U.S. government slapped tariff hikes on Chinese imports, including Chinese EVs, solar cells, steel, aluminum, EV batteries, and critical minerals, effective Sept. 27.

See Also: US Probes Surge In Chinese Uranium Imports Amid Fears Of Russian Ban Evasion

This came on top of the U.S.’s advanced semiconductor sanctions by restricting its access to sophisticated artificial intelligence chips from Nvidia Corp in China.

On Monday, the European Commission informed Reuters that the deadline for Chinese EV makers to make minimum price commitments had expired.

The Commission, amid an anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese EVs, has proposed final tariffs of up to 35.3% in addition to the European Union’s standard 10% car import duty as they find that the industrial subsidies have rendered the Chinese imports as cheap, leading to unfair competition, SCMP reports. Last week, the Commission rejected offers from Chinese exporters to put a price floor on their EV shipments.

China opposed the EU import tariffs and assured support for the industry, which was grappling with lackluster domestic demand and protectionist tariffs. Chinese EV stocks are down 44%- 52% in the last 12 months.

The EU will vote on the proposed final duties on September 25.

Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao went to Europe this week for discussions on the EU’s anti-subsidy case, Reuters reports.

Price Actions: NIO stock is up 1.30% at $5.47 premarket at the last check Tuesday. XPEV is up 2.35% at $9.13, LI is up 5.83% at $20.16, ZK is up 2.29% at $16.11.

Now Read:

• Singapore’s DBS Bank Launches Bitcoin And Ethereum Options Trading For Institutional Clients

Image: Shutterstock

© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Asian equities traded in the US as American depositary receipts were moving slightly lower Tuesday morning, declining 0.2% to 1,929.84 on the S&P Asia 50 ADR Index.

From North Asia, the gainers were led by video-streaming service iQIYI and internet and data center provider VNET Group , which rose 6.9% and 6.2% respectively. They were followed by financial services company CNFinance and computer hardware maker Canaan , which were up 6% and 5.8% respectively.

The decliners from North Asia were led by financial services company Dunxin Financial and automotive e-commerce platform TuanChe , which fell 34% and 4.1% respectively. They were followed by property technology company Fangdd Network Group and financial services company Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group , which were down 3.5% and 3.4% respectively.

From South Asia, the gainers were led by IT firm Sify Technologies , which increased 3.5%, followed by business process management company WNS and financial services company HDFC Bank , which rose 0.5% and 0.2% respectively.

The decliners from South Asia were led by tech conglomerate Sea and IT firm Infosys , which lost 1.5% and 1.2% respectively. They were followed by telecommunications operator Telekomunikasi Indonesia , which was off 1.1%.