EU carmakers ‘days away’ from halting work as chip war with China escalates
Carmakers in the EU are “days away” from closing production lines, the industry has warned, as a crisis over computer chip supplies from China escalates.The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) issued an urgent warning on Wednesday saying its members, which include BMW, Fiat, Peugeot and Volkswagen, were now working on “reserve stocks but supplies are dwindling”.“Assembly line stoppages might only be days away.We urge all involved to redouble their efforts to find a diplomatic way out of this critical situation,” said its director general, Sigrid de Vries.Another ACEA member, Mercedes, is now searching globally for alternative sources of the crucial semiconductors, according to its chief executive, Ola Källenius.
The chip shortage is also causing problems in Japan, where Nissan’s chief performance officer, Guillaume Cartier, told reporters at a car show in Tokyo that the company was only “OK to the first week of November” in terms of supply,Beijing banned exports of Nexperia chips near the start of the month in response to the Dutch government’s decision to take over the Netherlands-headquartered company on 30 September and suspend its Chinese chief executive after the US flagged security concerns,Last week car companies in the UK, EU and Japan, including brands such as Honda, Nissan, Volkswagen and Volvo, said the ban on exports from Nexperia factories in China could halt production lines,“The industry is currently working through reserve stocks but supplies are rapidly dwindling,From a survey of our members this week, some are already expecting imminent assembly line stoppages,” de Vries said.
The Nexperia chip ban was a blow to Europe’s car sector, which has already been hit by President Xi Jinping’s decision to reintroduce controls on exports of rare earth exports as part of the escalating trade tensions with the US.Xi and Donald Trump are expected to sign off on a trade agreement when they meet on the sidelines of a summit in South Korea on Thursday.The proposed deal would pause the export ban on the crucial minerals for a year, but it is unclear if this will also cover deliveries to the EU.Rare earths, in particular magnets, are used across the car industry for window, door and boot openings, while chips are critical to all electronics in vehicles, ranging from dashboard functions to ignition and transmission systems.De Vries said while alternative suppliers for chips existed, it could take “months to build up additional capacity”.
She said the “industry does not have that long before the worst effects of this shortage are felt”.A high-level delegation from Beijing will arrive in Brussels on Friday for talks but there are fears the diplomatic tools deployed by the EU in the past months are not as effective as the hardballing used by the US and China.Andrew Small, a senior fellow and China expert at the German Marshall Fund, an American thinktank, said: “I think the EU needs a fix super-quickly on Nexperia and there are hopes that there may be some progress on that this week.”Small believes China’s attitude to the EU has changed since April, when it learned that hardballing the US got results.“This is all part of a new strategy where China is repeatedly now taking steps that bring European industry and other industries around the world to the point of choking them off,” he said.
“It is no longer that Europe is collateral damage, it is China targeting Europe and I think people are beginning to understand that now,”De Vries said: “We know that all parties to this dispute are working very hard to find a diplomatic solution,At the same time, our members are telling us that part supplies are already being stopped due to the shortage,”The Dutch government seized control of Nexperia on 30 September, citing lapses in governance,On 4 October, the Chinese ministry of commerce blocked exports of the chipmaker’s products out of China.
While most of Nexperia’s semiconductors are produced in Europe, about 70% are packaged in China before distribution.A spokesperson for Wingtech, Nexperia’s Chinese owner, said the chip shortage was self-inflicted and “a result of the ill-considered measures by the Dutch government”, which had “jeopardised global business continuity”.The company’s Chinese arm has taken steps towards independence and has resumed selling products to domestic Chinese customers.The sources said the Dutch government believes it can negotiate a resolution with China that will restore the company to a unified Dutch-Chinese structure.
South Africa claim historic World Cup final spot as Wolvaardt blows England away
South Africa made history in Guwahati on Wednesday, after a phenomenal innings from their captain, Laura Wolvaardt, and remarkable figures of five for 20 from Marizanne Kapp helped them to a 125-run win against England and into their first 50-over World Cup final.Wolvaardt took 115 balls to bring up a maiden World Cup hundred, which was reason enough to celebrate. But with wickets tumbling at the other end, and England looking like they might have an easy-enough chase on their hands, she unleashed a superb display of boundary-striking, adding 69 runs in 28 balls.Wolvaardt slammed four sixes down the ground and slog-swept Linsey Smith for 20 runs off the 47th over. Even when she holed out to Lauren Bell in the 48th, Chloe Tryon and Nadine de Klerk took over, hitting 16 off Smith in the 49th over as England’s best death bowler was made to resemble an amateur
Australia will target Freeman at centre in England clash, George Gregan warns
The former Australia captain George Gregan says they will target Tommy Freeman’s defending at outside-centre for England on Saturday.Steve Borthwick’s side kick off their autumn campaign at Twickenham against opponents who consigned them to a dramatic late defeat last year, and the head coach has made some notable selectorial calls.George Ford starts at No 10 instead of Fin Smith, Ford’s Sale Sharks colleague Tom Roebuck is on the wing and, most interestingly, Freeman will play at No 13.The in-form Northampton back will line up in midfield for England for the second time, switching from a more familiar role out wide. He scored four tries in the Saints’ win against Saracens last Friday wearing the No 14 jersey, and outside-centre requires a different set of skills, particularly without the ball
Shohei Ohtani had an off night at the World Series but he still breaks baseball logic
The Dodgers star pitched in Game 3 just 18 hours after setting records with the bat. It’s a reminder of how he makes the miraculous seem mundaneEven Shohei Ohtani’s teammates struggle to find the right adjectives to describe him; ones that express how good he is while emphasizing how unlikely his existence is in the first place.After Monday’s Game 3, when Ohtani became the first player in postseason history to reach base nine times in a World Series game, Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman opted for “unicorn,” one of the more common Ohtani descriptors. Starting pitcher Blake Snell, meanwhile, put things simple and plain.“He’s going to do spectacular things all the time,” Snell said
Wallabies resume England rivalry with memories still fresh of Twickenham triumph | Angus Fontaine
Smell that? That delicious whiff, sometimes bitter, but all the sweeter for its bluster? ‘Tis the distinctive funk of Australia-England sporting acrimony back on the breeze. The Kangaroos and England battling over rugby league Tests. The Lionesses and the Matildas resuming their World Cup feud. Stuart Broad and the Barmy Army playing at villainy before the Ashes next month. And the green grass of Twickenham twitching at the Wallabies’ return this weekend
NFL’s No 1 draft pick Cam Ward victim of identity theft in $250,000 scheme
Two people armed with a number of false identities managed to fraudulently obtain a quarter of a million dollars’ worth of loans in the name of Cam Ward, the quarterback of the National Football League’s Tennessee Titans, according to authorities.Albert Weber, 42, and Cyntrelle Lash, 39, are facing charges of identity theft, bank fraud and forgery after their arrests in a case whose victims allegedly include the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft, his father and the business that loaned out the money in question, said Capt Jason Rivarde of the sheriff’s office in Jefferson parish, Louisiana, outside New Orleans.While attempts to contact Lash for comment were unsuccessful, Weber vehemently denied wrongdoing, suggesting the actions attributed to him were carried out by someone else who falsely assumed his identity.The case in any event highlights how increasingly common fraud involving professional athletes has become amid rises in their endorsement and salary income, as highlighted by a 2021 report from global accounting and consulting firm EY.As Rivarde put it, beginning in March, Weber and Lash worked together to secure multiple loans cumulatively worth at least $250,000 in the name of Ward, whose four-year rookie contract with the Titans is reportedly worth about $48
The Spin | Sophie Devine’s impact on women’s cricket should be measured in more than statistics
The New Zealand legend played with joy and fun, but was also a true fighter who spanned eras in the women’s gameAs the Women’s World Cup has progressed, sanding down the edges and turning up the four semi-finalists you might have predicted from the start, a sideshow has been quietly playing stage left. A down-to-earth sideshow – just like the woman herself – the Sophie Devine farewell.Devine made her New Zealand debut in October 2006, in an ODI and T20 series against Australia. Nineteen years later, still with the same open face and broad smile, she has played her final one-day international – a losing affair against England neither side will polish up for the mantelpiece. The most memorable moment came at the end with the affectionate guard of honour given to Devine by both sides and the Māori tribute led by Melie Kerr and sung by her teary teammates as the stadium emptied
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