Economist explains why electric vehicles could be the ‘next big flop’

Published

2 years ago

November 2, 2023

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Just like Fords “Edsel” model in the 1950s, Trump administration economist Steve Moore cautioned that electric vehicles (EVs) may be the auto market’s “next big flop.”

“Henry Ford’s son was named Edsel, and this was going to be the great car, all of the executives said, ‘This is the car everybody’s going to want to buy.’ Ford made 500,000 of these new sedan cars, but guess what?” Moore said on “Varney & Co.” Monday. “Nobody bothered to ask consumers whether they wanted the car.”

“And of course, the Edsel was one of the great flops of all time,” the economist continued. “I’m here to tell you, if these trends continue, we’re going to see the EV market become the next big flop because car buyers don’t want them.”

Moores comments come as the EV push at Ford and General Motors hit a speed bump thats cutting into the automakers profits and causing them to reevaluate their electric plans amid a price war and supply chain challenges.

Ford noted in its earnings report released last week that its EV unit posted a quarterly loss before interest and taxes (EBIT) of $1.33 billion an acceleration after a loss of $1.08 billion in the prior quarter. It added that its cutting production of its Mustang Mach-E while scaling back about $12 billion in planned investments in the EV segment, including delaying its second battery plant in Kentucky.

General Motors saw its quarterly profit reduced by about $1.5 billion because of higher costs and the impact of selling more EVs, though it doesnt break out losses from its EV unit in the same way Ford does.

GM CFO Paul Jacobson said that it would abandon an interim goal of building 400,000 EVs from 2022 through mid-2024, instead focusing on a goal of “getting to 1 million EVs of production by the end of 2025 alongside hitting our margin targets.”

“Given the huge losses that these companies like Ford are suffering because of the EV mania, I saw a statistic this morning that Ford is losing something like between $40,000 and $60,000 per car,” Moore reacted. “It’s been a bad bet.”

The economist further argued that auto industry-wide bailouts may be likely amid companies EV losses.

“The federal government is also already offering all of these sweeteners to get people to buy electric vehicles. You get a $7,500, basically, check from the government every time you buy an EV. Let’s not forget that we’re subsidizing the battery companies, all of these things,” Moore noted.

“The taxpayers are paying for these things,” he added. “And yet the most amazing thing is, even with all these sweeteners, Americans are still saying, I don’t want them.”

Speaking to car dealers around the country, Moore reported that their lots “are full of EVs” and only 10% of clients purchase EVs off the lot today.

“I think the car companies would be smart going to hybrids where you can have gas and an electric battery,” the economist and adviser suggested. “But the car companies aren’t making those cars. And the reason they aren’t making them is because the government has increasingly mandate[d] that all cars be EVs.”

FOX Business Eric Revell contributed to this report.

World

Trump could meet Putin as early as next week to discuss Ukraine ceasefire – White House official

Published

3 hours ago

August 7, 2025

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Trump could meet Putin as early as next week to discuss Ukraine ceasefire - White House official

Donald Trump could meet Vladimir Putin in person as early as next week to discuss a ceasefire in Ukraine, a White House official has said.

They said the meeting would be conditional on the Russian president meeting his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Sky News’s US partner network NBC News reported.

It came days before the White House’s deadline for Russia to reach a peace deal with Ukraine or face severe economic penalties, which could also target countries buying its oil.

Ukraine war latest

Asked during a news conference at the White House if the talks would take place, Mr Trump said: “There’s a very good prospect that they will.”

He said it had not been determined where the talks would take place, but added: “We had some very good talks with President Putin today.”

However, he said: “I’ve been disappointed before with this one.”

Asked if Mr Putin made any kind of concession to lead to the development, Mr Trump did not give much away, but added: “We’ve been working on this a long time. There are thousands of young people dying, mostly soldiers, but also, you know, missiles being hit into Kyiv and other places.”

Trump might finally be a step closer to ending the war

Seven hours is a long time in US politics.

At 10am, Donald Trump accused Russia of posing a threat to America’s national security.

At 5pm, Trump said there was a “good prospect” of him meeting Vladimir Putin “soon”.

There had, he claimed, been “great progress” in talks between his special envoy Steve Witkoff and the Russian president.

It’s difficult to gauge the chances of a meeting between the two leaders without knowing what “great progress” means.

Is Russia “inclined” towards agreeing a ceasefire, as Ukraine’s president now claims?

Is Putin prepared to meet with his Ukrainian foe Volodymyr Zelenskyy, too?

The very fact that we’re asking those questions suggests something shifted on a day when there was no expectation of breakthrough.

Trump repeatedly vowed to end the war within 24 hours of becoming president.

On day 198 of his presidency, he might, just might, be one step closer to achieving that.

More tariffs ‘could happen’

Mr Trump also said he could announce further tariffs on China similar to the 25% he announced on India over its purchases of Russian oil.

“Could happen,” he said, after saying he expected to announce more secondary sanctions intended to pressure Russia into ending its war with Ukraine.

Earlier, he imposed an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods, on top of a previous 25% tariff, over its continued purchases of Russian oil.

India’s foreign ministry spokesperson said the additional tariffs were “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable”.

It came after Mr Putin held talks with Mr Trump‘s special envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow, with the meeting lasting around three hours.

In a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump said Mr Witkoff “had a highly productive meeting” with Mr Putin in which “great progress was made”.

He said he had updated America’s European allies, and they will work towards an end to the Russia-Ukraine war “in the days and weeks to come”.

‘The war must end’

Mr Zelenskyy later said he and Mr Trump spoke on the phone after the meeting. He said “European leaders also participated in the conversation” and “we discussed what was said in Moscow”.

He added: “Our common position with our partners is absolutely clear: The war must end. We all need lasting and reliable peace. Russia must end the war that it started.”

Mr Zelenskyy later said: “It seems that Russia is now more inclined to agree to a ceasefire.”

He added that the pressure on Moscow “is working”, without elaborating, and stressed it was important to make sure Russia does not “deceive us or the United States” when it comes to “the details” of a potential agreement.

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