I was born in the 1980s, so for most of my life, it felt like all the best stuff was made in Japan. The most advanced electronics, the coolest video games and certainly the best cars. But the recession of the 1990s, the devastating earthquake in the early 2010s and a series of industry-wide technological choices have left Japan's auto industry scrambling to get ready for the electric vehicle future, despite being early pioneers in that field. Don't think the so-called EV sales slowdown is changing that situation one bit.
Plus, we hear more about how Ford is sounding the alarm over China, and the Volkswagen Group's new Scout Motors brand is looking for cheap batteries. You'll find all of those stories on today's Presidents' Day edition of our Critical Materials news roundup.
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