autoregion international 2/2020 - Greater Region Mobility Innovation

5 Innovations show the way out of the crisis By VDA President Hildegard Müller The effects of the corona pandemic have caused the automotive markets to collapse worldwide and plunged the industry – especially in Europe and Germany – into the worst crisis in decades. The slump in the market is unprec- edented in scale. In the first half of 2020, new car registrations in Germany fell by almost 35 percent to 1.21 million cars. This is the lowest value for a first half year in Germany since reunification 30 years ago. A slight recovery is in sight for the second half of the year. A sign of this is the order intake at German manufacturers, where the minus compared to the same month of the previous year was significantly lower in June than in May. The commercial vehicle markets are hit even harder by the crisis. Worldwide sales of com- mercial vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of over 6 tons will decrease by 24 percent to 2.6 million units according to VDA forecasts in 2020. The dramatic drop in demand, the tempo- rary demolition of the supply chains and the weeks-long production stoppages meant that car production in Germany in the first half of the year fell to the lowest level in 45 years. From January to June, only 1.5 million vehicles were manufactured at the German locations – 40 percent less than in the same period last year. The spread of the virus still seems to be under control in Germany. But regional outbreaks and the increased travel activity in the context of the summer vacation hold enormous dan- gers. We cannot be reckless now. In addition to the health hazard, a “second wave” would also have enormous economic consequences, which are likely to be much more difficult to cope with. Our health protection efforts therefore continue unabated. With regard to the economy as a whole, the main concern now is to maintain the industrial base in Europe and Germany and to secure em- ployment. In addition, the automotive indus- try is continuing to drive its transformation for new drives and digitalization. These are enor- mous challenges that have to be mastered at the same time. With investments of € 50 billion in new drives alone and a further € 25 billion in digitaliza- tion by 2024, the VDA member companies are investing significantly in the transformation. The e-model range of German brandswill more than double from the current 70 to more than 150 models by the end of 2023. With a view to international markets, growth and employment, we also need an intelligent mix of offers: from battery-electric cars to low-emission vehicles with state-of-the-art petrol and diesel engines. The plug-in hybrid in particular offers enormous opportunities here. And to achieve the major goal of climate-neu- tral mobility, the use of hydrogen and e-fuels will become more important. Overall, I am convinced that the car will continue to be an elementary part of climate-friendlymobility in the future. The requirements for the means of transport differ – for example between city and country. That is why it is important to use the best solution in each case, to take people’s realities into account and to be open to tech- nology when it comes to future mobility. The second half of 2020 is very challenging for our industry. It is about overcoming the corona crisis, the transformation towards climate protection and digitization, securing the competitiveness of our industry and the future of the EU. This crisis hits the economy hard, it attacks the industrial core and thus the basis of prosperity, growth and employment. We need every support to strengthen this industrial base. It is important to revive the economy quickly and comprehensively in order to strengthen demand and give our companies and their employees a perspective. Image: © VDA VDA President Hildegard Müller VDA www.vda.de Innovationen weisen den Weg aus der Krise Die Auswirkungen der Corona-Pandemie haben die Automobilmärkte weltweit ein- brechen lassen und die Industrie – insbe- sondere auch in Europa und Deutschland – in die schwerste Krise seit Jahrzehnten gestürzt. Der Einbruch der Märkte ist sei- nem Ausmaß beispiellos. Im ersten Halbjahr 2020 gingen die Pkw- Neuzulassungen in Deutschland umknapp 35 Prozent auf 1,21 Mio. Pkw zurück. Das ist der niedrigste Wert für ein erstes Halbjahr in Deutschland seit der Wieder- vereinigung vor 30 Jahren. Für das zweite Halbjahr deutet sich eine leichte Erholung an. Ein Zeichen dafür ist der Auftragsein- gang bei deutschen Herstellern, bei dem das Minus gegenüber dem Vergleichs- monat aus dem Vorjahr im Juni deutlich geringer war als noch im Mai. Noch stärker werden die Nutzfahrzeug- märkte durch die Krise getroffen. Der weltweite Absatz von Nutzfahrzeugen … Weiterlesen … https://t1p.de/927 Summary S H A R E