And in June, California mandated that commercial truck fleets begin transitioning to zero-emissions vehicles in 2024. “There is this generational transition to electric that’s going to happen, and there’s potential for explosive growth, so there’s a lot of excitement.”Īmazon, UPS, FedEx and other owners of big delivery fleets like Anheuser-Busch have outlined strategies to cut their carbon emissions and shift to zero-emissions trucks, noted Jeffrey Osborne of Cowen & Company. “Not all players are going to make it, but there’s super-duper hype right now,” said Gregory Lewis, an analyst at BTIG Research. Ford, Mercedes-Benz, General Motors and Fiat Chrysler are all planning to sell electric vans and trucks. Competition will be stiff, including from traditional automakers that have manufacturing expertise and established relationships with big fleet operators.

Of course, there’s no guarantee of success for any of these electric-truck makers. The company has said it hopes to begin producing the semi next year but has warned that output will be limited for a time by a tight supply of battery cells. It is building a plant in Texas to manufacture the vehicle as well as a futuristic-looking pickup truck for consumers. Tesla itself plans to make a battery-powered semi truck. government bonds compare, has preceded every U.S. A Recession Alarm: An inversion of the bond market’s yield curve, a way of showing how interest rates on various U.S.Being prepared can minimize hardship and even offer investing opportunities, our columnist says. Advice for Investors: Bear markets and recessions are far more common than many people realize.A Bright Spot: As financial markets around the world fell this spring amid worries about inflation and rising interest rates, energy was the only sector gaining ground.Grim Outlook: Investors had an awful start to the year as stocks twice entered bear market territory, and further losses may be on the way.And it remains difficult to predict what is in store for the future. Lordstown Motors, in which Workhorse has a stake, is working on an electric commercial pickup truck, and has a market capitalization of about $3 billion.Ī Guide for Investors The decline of the stock and bond markets this year has been painful. It is trying to develop electric propulsion systems for semi trucks. These publicly traded newcomers include Hyliion Holdings, valued at more than $2 billion. Also known as blank-check companies, they consist of little more than a stock listing and investor cash. Even after a plunge of more than 75 percent in its stock price - largely fueled by a hedge fund’s assertion that the company had exaggerated its abilities - Nikola has a market value of more than $6 billion.Īt least a dozen companies trying to make electric vehicles or related technology have gone public in the last year, often by merging with special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs. Interest in the electrification of commercial vehicles is one reason that Wall Street embraced Nikola, a start-up aiming to make hydrogen-powered heavy trucks, whose market capitalization briefly exceeded Ford Motor’s valuation last summer. The company has struggled at times and at least once nearly ran out of cash, but executives are hopeful that its breakout moment is at hand. Unlike some of its rivals, Workhorse is not a start-up and has been making small numbers of electric trucks for years.

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