We're not even a full two months into 2024, and already, three major automakers have publicly renounced their earlier EV ambitions. America's General Motors was the first, Britain's (or is that India's?) JLR was the second, and now the German folks at the world's oldest automaker have said that an all-electric Mercedes portfolio is less of a priority than introducing more hybrids. Immediately after these three adjusted roadmaps to full-scale electrification were made public, each company's share price spiked.
This contrasts with a year back when the Financial Times published a disparaging article calling Toyota's decision to take its time with EVs "a tragic flaw." Yet 12 months later, the very investors who thought it imperative to ditch engines are celebrating the sounds of starter motors, while those who berated Akio Toyoda and his hordes of hybrids are eating their words: Toyota is currently enjoying record profits - profits so high that Toyota is voluntarily offering its suppliers more money.
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