South Korea is moving to domestically produce key components for electric vehicle (EV) fast chargers, as Chinese-made power modules account for more than 90% of those installed in the country, according to a Hankyung report.

After a series of operational adjustments, Young Optics narrowed its losses sharply in 2025, benefiting from an improved product mix and higher capacity utilization. The Taiwanese optical components maker reported a full-year net loss of about NT$9 million (approx. US$284,600), a dramatic improvement from the year before.

As US automakers scale back their electric vehicle (EV) ambitions, Chinese manufacturers are pressing ahead, leveraging technological and structural advantages to expand rapidly across global markets. Industry analysts warn that the retreat by US carmakers could place the American auto industry in what some describe as an unprecedented "existential crisis."

LG Display (LGD) agreed on February 9 to sell its automotive LCD module business in Nanjing, China, to Toprun Total Solution, according to a regulatory filing reported by ZDNet Korea. The transaction is valued at approximately KRW104.1 billion (approx. US$71 million) and is scheduled to close on July 30.

The South Korean government announced plans to invest KRW464.5 billion (approximately US$316 million) in the automotive sector in 2026, targeting research and development as well as infrastructure upgrades to accelerate the country's transition to next-generation vehicles. Key priorities will include end-to-end artificial intelligence (E2E AI) for autonomous driving, software-defined vehicle (SDV) standard systems, and extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) powertrains.

After the United States formally imposed a 15 percent import tariff on European automobiles, Germany's three largest carmakers—Volkswagen, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz—have found themselves forced to navigate a difficult trade-off between brand identity and geopolitical reality. Facing the same policy shock, the three companies have responded in markedly different ways, offering a revealing case study for global automakers and supply chains grappling with a more protectionist era.

As the global electric vehicle market grapples with mounting concerns over collapsing resale values, China—the world's largest and most experimentally regulated EV market—is moving decisively with a sweeping policy overhaul.

A single regulatory notice issued recently by China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has made the country the first in the world to formally declare the end of what might be called the automotive industry's "era of invisibility." Under the new rules, beginning Jan. 1, 2027, all new vehicles sold in China will be prohibited from using fully electric hidden door handles. The regulation effectively applies the brakes to an industry-wide push toward ever more electronic, futuristic design, forcing automakers to return to a basic principle of physical safety.

China has stepped up electric vehicle safety regulation, with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology approving a new mandatory national standard, Technical Requirements for Automobile Door Handle Safety (GB 48001-2026). The rules require all EVs sold in China to feature independently operable mechanical door-opening mechanisms on both the inside and outside, banning designs that rely entirely on electronic systems or concealed handles.