Asian Technology and Chipmaking Stocks Slide as AI Spending Concerns Shake Markets 
Asian Fund Managers Turn More Optimistic on Growth but Curb Equity Return Expectations: BofA Survey 
Amazon in Talks to Invest $10 Billion in OpenAI as AI Firm Eyes $1 Trillion IPO Valuation 
China’s November Economic Data Signals Slowing Industrial Output and Weak Consumer Demand 
FDA Says No Black Box Warning Planned for COVID-19 Vaccines Despite Safety Debate 
Trump Sues BBC for Defamation Over Edited Capitol Riot Speech Clip 
Trump Orders Blockade of Sanctioned Oil Tankers, Raising Venezuela Tensions and Oil Prices 
Asian Currencies Trade Sideways as Dollar Weakens Ahead of Key U.S. Data 
New Zealand Budget Outlook Shows Prolonged Deficits Despite Economic Recovery Hopes 
California Jury Awards $40 Million in Johnson & Johnson Talc Cancer Lawsuit 
Chinese Robotaxi Stocks Rally as Tesla Boosts Autonomous Driving Optimism 
MetaX IPO Soars as China’s AI Chip Stocks Ignite Investor Frenzy 
Gold and Silver Prices Dip as Markets Await Key U.S. Economic Data 
Sanofi’s Efdoralprin Alfa Gains EMA Orphan Status for Rare Lung Disease 
Silver Prices Hit Record High as Safe-Haven Demand Surges Amid U.S. Economic Uncertainty 
iRobot Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Amid Rising Competition and Tariff Pressures 
LG Energy Solution Shares Slide After Ford Cancels EV Battery Supply Deal 
Kia will hold its groundbreaking ceremony in Hwaseong, where its first facility in South Korea is set to be built in March. It will be a factory for the production of Purpose Built Vehicles (PBV) and is expected to yield 200,000 units per year starting July 2025.
The plant will be Kia’s very first facility in South Korea in 26 years, and this means the automaker has not constructed any factory in the country in more than two decades. It was reported that the company made the decision to build a new vehicle factory plant in its home ground following years of negotiations with its own labor union.
According to The Korea Herald, Kia and its unionized workers reached an agreement with regard to the production of 200,000 electric PBVs, annually. It is said to be a long-term contract that will also eventually expand the production lines from 50,000 units.
The PBVs to be built include electric buses and shuttle service vehicles, and future mobility vehicles such as robot taxis and portable offices. Purpose Build Vehicles are eco-friendly mobility device based on an electric vehicle that supports various future lifestyles.
In any case, Kia and the labor union also agreed to make pickup trucks with internal combustion engines. It will be produced in one of the three plants in Hwaseong by Dec. 2024. It was added that Kia would be making its first pickup truck model in 43 years, as this was discontinued in 1981.
“Although pickup trucks have been considered to appeal to a small customer base, demand for the light-duty vehicles is growing quickly in global markets and likely to increase here as well,” a company official said.
Kim Pil Su, an automotive engineering professor at Daelim University, also commented, “Although PBVs are expected to account for 30% of the total vehicles by 2030 worldwide, it would have been reasonable to lower the target production volume from 200,000 to 150,000 units. Even Tesla is currently facing oversupply issues with its gigafactory in Shanghai due to a demand shortage.”
Photo by: Mark Bishop/Unsplash
