Car dashboards have an array of indicators that illuminate to warn of hassle. If the boardrooms of Europe’s carmakers had related programs they might be lit up like a Christmas market. Volkswagen (VW), the most important of the lot by gross sales, is bracing for strikes starting on December 1st in response to its plan to shut three factories in Germany and minimize wages. Northvolt, a once-promising Swedish battery startup wherein VW and BMW invested, has collapsed out of business. In the meantime, throughout the Atlantic, Donald Trump is threatening to upend provide chains by imposing a 25% tariff on imports from Mexico and Canada.
