It’s like a push and pull situation for every business during this time. Everything is unprecedented. One minute, we feel like everything is about to get better, that it will be back to normal soon. But the next thing we know, new variants are discovered from different parts of the world. Hence, we can’t blame people if they are doubtful about making big business decisions. Auto companies and their investors feel the same way. Today, we will talk about a few US auto companies and their developments during this time.
The concern about the new variants
Yes, several vaccines have received their EUA from the FDA for quite some time now. There are also a lot of vaccination drives already. However, there are still many places in the US and other parts of the world where people did not get vaccinated yet. Some do not even have access.
Traders and investors engaged with the US auto companies have the right to feel concerned. We never expected the original COVID-19 variant to cause this much damage, but it did. Factories stopped operating. Supply lines were halted. Everything was a mess.
There is a pressing concern about the uncertainty that this pandemic brings. For instance, the “Delta variant” has been spreading fast. It is also said to be more infectious. Hence, if the original one caused this much problem, this variant deemed more infectious also has a massive potential to do so.
The declines on Monday
Since we have been talking about the rise of the Delta variant, we might also talk about some of its effects. Several US auto companies saw a decline as they open on Monday. But the good news is: they recovered later in the day. The special-purpose acquisition company Churchill Capital IV which is about to merge with Lucid Motors, declined 2.2%. Ford and General Motors were down 2.8% and 2.4%, respectively.
The developments, albeit the Monday decline
Let us start with Churchill Capital IV, which is set to merge with Lucid Motors on July 22. After this merger, the two will be a single entity that will go with Lucid Motor’s name under the ticker LCID. Lucid Motor’s CEO Peter Rawlinson will be the CEO of the merged companies.
Ford will recall 800k vehicles because of suspension issues. These figures include 35k Super Duty (2020 and 2021) and 775k Ford Explorers (made between 2013 and 2017). They did not mention anything about the costs. So, we can assume that the recalls are only minor problems, and they should not cause a strain on Ford’s earnings.
General Motors are all about its new stint. It offers commercial and government-related customers an electric-vehicle charging service called “Ultium Charge 360.” This is supposed to help the customers with an easy transition to e-vehicles. The new company called EVgo, which went public only last month, is its partner in this new service.
We’ll have to wait
Until the close on Thursday, we will have to wait if the Churchill Capital IV shareholders made the merger with Lucid Motors happen. It is most likely, but we can only wait and see. Ford and General Motors, on the other hand, are about to report their Q2 earnings. We are all excited about what the future may bring for these companies, while we are also excited for this pandemic to end.
