【4.9 Lithium Battery News】Canada Announces Reciprocal Tariffs on US Vehicles to Take Effect on the 9th

The Price Cost and Certification Center of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) conducted a special survey on the NEV and related industries in Guangdong and Sichuan. Dong Yang, Deputy Director of the Price Cost and Certification Center of the NDRC, led a team to Guangdong and Sichuan provinces to conduct a special survey on the price situation of the NEV and power battery industries. The research team visited companies including BYD Co., Ltd. in Shenzhen, EVE Energy Co., Ltd. in Huizhou, GAC Aion NEV Co., Ltd., and China National Heavy Duty Truck Group Chengdu Commercial Vehicle Co., Ltd. to understand the "price war" in the NEV sector since 2023 and listened to companies' opinions and suggestions on rectifying "cut-throat competition" in pricing and promoting high-quality development in the industry.

PTL: Subsidiary Signs Memorandum of Cooperation with Germany's MOLL to Jointly Build a Sodium-Ion Battery Factory. PTL (603659.SH) announced that its subsidiary, Europe Jiato, signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with Germany's MOLL, covering cooperation from product development to mass production throughout the project's life cycle. MOLL plans to build a sodium-ion battery factory in Germany with an annual capacity target of 500MWh to 1GWh. Europe Jiato will provide MOLL with process design for battery pole piece production, electrode processing equipment, electrode samples, and other equipment required for battery prototype production, as well as comprehensive services including sample equipment R&D, production equipment R&D and supply, technical personnel training, and after-sales services. Additionally, Europe Jiato will supply various materials needed for MOLL's sodium-ion battery production. The Memorandum of Cooperation took effect upon signing and is valid for 24 months. This cooperation marks an important step in PTL's overseas market expansion and demonstrates its initial capability to fulfill overseas commitments.

South Korea Announces Emergency Measures to Help the Auto Industry Cope with US Tariff Impact. South Korea announced emergency support measures for the domestic auto industry on Wednesday, aiming to mitigate the impact of US President Trump's tariff policies on the sector. The government will reduce the vehicle purchase tax from the current 5% to 3.5% until June 2025 and increase the EV purchase subsidy from the current 20%-40% to 30%-80%, extending the deadline by six months to the end of this year. To prevent liquidity issues, the government will increase policy financing support for automakers in 2025 from the previously planned 13 trillion won to 15 trillion won.

Canada Announces Reciprocal Tariffs on US Vehicles to Take Effect on the 9th. Canada's Ministry of Finance announced on the 8th that reciprocal tariffs of 25% on US vehicles will take effect at 00:01 Eastern Time on the 9th. Canadian Finance Minister Shang Pengfei stated that Canada will continue to respond firmly to all unreasonable tariffs imposed by the US on Canada. The Canadian government is firmly committed to eliminating these US tariffs as soon as possible to protect Canadian workers, businesses, the economy, and industry. Shang Pengfei added that Canada will also implement a reduction plan for automakers to incentivize production and investment in Canada and help maintain Canadian jobs.

BYD: Q1 Net Profit Expected to Rise 86.04%-118.88% YoY. BYD announced that it expects a Q1 profit of 8.5 billion to 10 billion yuan, up 86.04%-118.88% YoY. In Q1, the NEV industry continued to maintain strong growth momentum, with NEV sales reaching a new historical high for the same period, and overseas NEV sales achieving leapfrog growth, further consolidating its leading position as the global NEV sales leader. Additionally, the company's continuous expansion of scale effects and vertical integration strategy contributed to a significant increase in the group's business profitability.

Wuhan Land: Current Orders on Hand Are Normal. Wuhan Land released its investor relations activity record, showing a 14.10% YoY decrease in 2024 revenue, mainly due to a slowdown in new capacity investment in the downstream NEV battery and materials industry, leading to a decline in demand for battery testing equipment and a reduction in orders. Starting from H2 2024, the cyclical adjustment trend in the battery and battery materials industry has slowed, and current orders on hand are normal.