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TomTom beats expectations as auto sector sales rebound

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Dutch navigation and digital mapping company TomTom reported quarterly earnings far exceeding expectations, driven by a recovery in automotive demand and tighter cost management. The company posted an operating profit of 8.4 million euros in the third quarter, sharply higher than analysts’ consensus of 2 million euros and a marked improvement from the 4.1 million euro loss recorded a year earlier.

Following the announcement, TomTom’s shares surged over 7% in early Amsterdam trading. CEO and co-founder Harold Goddijn attributed the strong results to a mix of growing automotive revenues and cost discipline, highlighting that process standardization across customer operating systems has increased efficiency and predictability.

In June, TomTom announced plans to cut 300 jobs as part of an AI-driven restructuring strategy aimed at streamlining operations. The firm’s automotive location technology unit, its largest division, was the only one to post revenue growth — a 2% increase — as global carmakers step up investment in navigation and self-driving technologies.

Despite lingering uncertainty in the car market, Goddijn noted a renewed appetite for automation among manufacturers in Japan, China, Europe, and the United States. While its consumer GPS products continue to see slowing demand, TomTom’s app remains profitable, supporting the development of its high-definition maps and connected driving systems.

Trump’s EV rollback rattles America’s Battery Belt economy

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The U.S. Battery Belt — a stretch of billion-dollar electric vehicle and battery factories from Georgia to Indiana — is feeling the shockwaves of President Donald Trump’s EV policy shift, as automakers delay projects and rural communities brace for economic fallout.

In Stanton, Tennessee, population 450, Ford’s vast EV truck and battery complex once promised 6,000 jobs and a revival of the local economy. But after repeated delays, initial production has been pushed back to 2027, two years later than planned. Former mayor Allan Sterbinsky said locals now worry Ford might abandon or repurpose the 3,600-acre site entirely.

The slowdown reflects waning U.S. demand for electric cars after Trump allowed a $7,500 EV tax credit to expire on Sept. 30, a move Ford’s CEO Jim Farley warned could halve electric car sales. Analysts say this and other anti-EV measures have jeopardized projects across the South and Midwest.

A Reuters review of U.S. battery-investment plans found that even if all planned plants go forward, the country could face a glut of capacity. By 2030, factories could produce batteries for 13–15 million EVs, while demand may cover only a quarter of that, or about 3 million units, according to Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.

Some excess output could be redirected to hybrids or energy storage, but experts warn many facilities may go underutilized. “Much of what was originally going to benefit from these credits now no longer can,” said Jennifer Stafeil of KPMG.

Still, some companies press ahead. Hyundai’s $12.6 billion EV and battery complex in Georgia remains on track despite a federal investigation delay, and will employ 8,500 workers by 2031, according to local officials.

For towns like Stanton, however, the optimism of the EV boom has faded into uncertainty. “That’s on everybody’s mind,” said Sterbinsky. “We built our future around this.”

Ferrari’s stock plunges 16% as new 2030 goals underwhelm despite EV reveal

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Ferrari shares tumbled over 16% on Thursday, erasing nearly €13.5 billion ($15.7 billion) in market value, after investors were disappointed by the company’s 2030 financial targets unveiled alongside the debut of its first electric vehicle (EV) platform.

The luxury carmaker raised its long-term revenue goal to €9 billion by 2030, up from €7.1 billion projected for this year. However, analysts called the target “underwhelming” compared to market expectations. “People were expecting a higher top line,” CEO Benedetto Vigna said during the presentation in Maranello, adding that Ferrari preferred realistic goals over overpromising.

Ferrari also scaled back its EV ambitions, now targeting a 2030 lineup comprising 40% internal combustion engines (ICE), 40% hybrids, and 20% fully electric vehicles, compared to the 2022 plan that aimed for 40% EVs.

At the event, Ferrari unveiled the Elettrica, its first electric car, showcasing a production-ready chassis with in-house-designed battery packs and electric motors from its new “e-building” facility in Maranello. The car will feature over 1,000 horsepower and seat four but has no confirmed price or release date yet.

Analysts at Citi said the updated guidance “fell below consensus expectations,” triggering the sharpest one-day decline in Ferrari’s shares since early 2024.

The company reaffirmed plans to launch four new models annually between 2026 and 2030 and expand its luxury lifestyle business with “Tailor Made” centers in Tokyo and Los Angeles and flagship stores in London and New York.