Daily brief
Automotive & Business Brief — 11 October 2026
The EU and China agreed to cut projected Chinese hybrid exports by more than half and lower Chinese tariffs on EU car parts; EU leaders meet 15–16 Oct. China’s home market fell 24% in September while exports hit records, and Paris opens Monday with a record 20 Chinese brands.
Executive Snapshot
- The EU and China agreed to cut projected Chinese hybrid exports by more than half and lower Chinese tariffs on EU car parts; EU leaders meet 15–16 Oct. China’s home market fell 24% in September while exports hit records, and Paris opens Monday with a record 20 Chinese brands.
Top Developments
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EU and China agree to curb Chinese hybrid exports; car parts get lower Chinese tariffs
Asia
At the end of the Beijing talks on 9 Oct, Trade Commissioner Šefčovič said both sides reached a ‘shared understanding to moderate’ China’s exports of hybrids and plug-in hybrids to the EU, which ‘opens the prospect of cutting China’s exports by more than a half’. The cut is measured against a no-change projection and would keep out ‘several millions’ of cars over four years. The mechanism, numbers and covered companies were not disclosed; the Commission will brief member states first and says the deal is WTO-compliant. China also agreed lower tariffs on EU goods including car parts (about €4bn of current exports, at least €225m in duty savings) and easier export licences for rare earths and permanent magnets. BEV price-undertaking procedures continue; the next ministerial round is March 2027, with a video call in January. VDA president Hildegard Müller called it ‘an initial positive signal’. EU leaders meet 15–16 Oct.
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Škoda’s harness shortage spreads to the Kodiaq in Kvasiny; Škoda looks to Tunisia or Morocco for harnesses
Africa
The Škoda union paper reported on 8 Oct (via ČTK) that parts problems now also hit the Kodiaq built in Kvasiny, on top of the wiring shortage for the Enyaq and Elroq in Mladá Boleslav; Peaq output is holding. Some shifts in hall M13 are cancelled and the Mladá Boleslav paint shops run a reduced plan for a second week. Seznam Zprávy links the shortage to Russian strikes on Kromberg & Schubert’s plant near Zhytomyr. KOVO union chief Jaroslav Povšík said Škoda moved to two-shift working and is trying to source harnesses elsewhere, for example from Tunisia or Morocco. Škoda confirms a supplier limitation but gives no models, volumes or expected duration.
Companies Škoda, Kromberg & Schubert
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Copper ends the week up about 2%; the Escondida mediation deadline falls this week
Americas
LME cash copper settled at $14,689/t on 9 Oct (three-month $14,570), up from $14,335 on 1 Oct. Reuters reported a 2% weekly gain on mine disruptions and Chinese demand: the Yangshan import premium hit a four-year high of $135/t, LME stocks fell to a six-week low of 233,025 t, and Comex stocks are a record 711,609 t. At Escondida, BHP requested government mediation on 5 Oct after about 95% of the supervisors’ union voted to strike; mediation lasts five working days and can be extended by five, so a legal strike could start around 13 Oct, or about a week later if extended. The Centinela union says its strike will start to weigh on output in November.
Companies BHP
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Paris Motor Show opens Monday with a record 20 Chinese brands and €15–18k European EVs
Europe
The show runs 12–18 Oct (press day Monday, Macron attending). Reuters counts a record 20 Chinese brands, twice the 2024 number, including newcomers Aito and Avatr; Aito brings four premium electric SUVs for Europe and wants overseas sales to reach 20% of volume within three years. Bloomberg cites Dataforce data showing Chinese brands took almost 12% of Europe’s market in August, and Chinese car and van imports into the EU rose nearly three quarters to almost 770,000 in January–August. European answers focus on price: Stellantis shows an electric Citroën 2CV based on Leapmotor technology, priced below €15,000, and Dacia shows the second-generation Spring from under €18,000, now assembled at Revoz in Novo mesto, Slovenia, which added a second shift and plans more than 300 hires. Renault Group shows six new models and Stellantis more than 60 vehicles from eight brands.
Companies Stellantis, Leapmotor, Renault
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VW confirms the ID. Tiguan will be built in Emden from early 2027; pre-sales start 13 Oct
Europe
VW premiered the ID. Tiguan on 9 Oct as the MEB+ successor to the ID.4 and ID.5 (more than 950,000 built). Brand CEO Thomas Schäfer called it ‘the ID. Tiguan from Emden’, sold alongside the petrol, diesel and hybrid Tiguan from Wolfsburg. Launch is early 2027, with 58 and 77 kWh batteries, up to 220 kW and up to 600 km WLTP range. It is the first European VW with a co-driver display and adds two Qi2 charging pads and a vehicle-to-load adapter. Pre-sales open in Germany and many European markets on 13 Oct from €42,695.
Companies Volkswagen
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Figueruelas: Leapmotor B10 series production starts this week; B05 brought forward to spring 2027
Global
Stellantis’ Figueruelas plant is due to start series assembly of the Leapmotor B10 in mid-October, with the official event on 16 Oct and about 400 new jobs. El Periódico de Aragón reported on 8 Oct, citing Aragonese industry sources, that the B05 compact will join line 2 with its first pre-series in spring 2027 (March), earlier than planned; earlier reports had pointed to the third quarter of 2027. Suppliers are starting to deliver B05 parts.
Companies Leapmotor, Stellantis
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Luxshare, Leoni’s majority owner, completes its takeover of chassis supplier BWI
Global
Luxshare-ICT became the 100% owner of BWI (suspension, braking and steering) after a share-transfer ceremony in Shanghai on 9 Oct, according to BWI and Gasgoo. The combined chassis business has eight R&D centres, seven production sites and two test facilities across China, Europe, North America and South America. Luxshare has owned 74.9% of Leoni since April 2026.
Companies Luxshare, LEONI
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China September: retail −24%, NEVs −12%, petrol cars collapse while exports lift wholesale
Asia
Full-month CPCA preliminary data (10 Oct) show passenger car retail sales of 1.702m, down 24% year on year (up 10% on August); year to date 13.42m, −21%. NEV retail was 1.141m (−12%), a 67.1% share. Wholesale was 2.528m (−10%), but NEV wholesale hit a 2026 high of 1.672m (+11%), helped by exports. Petrol-car wholesale fell 41%, and domestic petrol-car production dropped 52% in the first three weeks of September. Chinese brands took 29% of the overseas NEV market in August.
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Turkey’s September auto exports reach $3.94bn; the supply industry is the largest segment
Europe
OİB data (7–8 Oct) show automotive exports of $3.94bn in September, 15.2% of all Turkish exports, and $31.15bn for January–September. The supply industry exported $1.46bn in September and $12.14bn year to date, 39% of the sector total. Germany was the largest market ($629m), followed by France ($506m) and the UK ($453m); EU countries took 73.4% ($2.89bn).
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BMW opens voluntary severance offers to about 40,000 German employees
Europe
BMW launched its voluntary redundancy programme on Thursday 8 Oct, giving about 40,000 eligible staff access to personal offers; the HR portal briefly crashed under demand (Handelsblatt, Automobilwoche). The programme is part of the June plan to cut about 8,000 jobs in Germany by end-2027, excluding direct production, and to reduce departments and management positions by 20% by mid-2027. BMW is also considering letting less profitable models run out without successors; so far only the 2 Series Active Tourer has been named.
Companies BMW