Become a contributor

Bookmark Econotimes

Fri, Apr 10, 2026 05:17 AM All times are UTC

Follow Series

Electric Vehicle Series

©Econometrics LLC . All Rights Reserved.

An electric car is an automobile that is propelled by one or more electric motors, using electrical energy stored in rechargeable batteries or another energy storage device. Electric motors give electric cars instant torque, creating strong and smooth acceleration. They are also around three times as efficient as cars with an internal combustion engine. The first electric cars were produced in the 1880s. Since 2008, a renaissance in electric vehicle manufacturing has occurred due to advances in batteries and energy management, concerns about increasing oil prices, and the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Several national and local governments have established tax credits, subsidies, and other incentives to promote the introduction and adoption in the mass market of new electric vehicles depending on battery size and their all-electric range. Electric cars are significantly quieter than conventional internal combustion engine automobiles. They do not emit tailpipe pollutants, giving a large reduction of local air pollution, and, can give a significant reduction in total greenhouse gas and other emissions (dependent on the method used for electricity generation). As of September 2015, there are over 30 models of highway legal all-electric passenger cars and utility vans available for retail sales, mainly in the United States, China, Japan, Western European countries. By mid-September 2015, about 620,000 light-duty electric vehicles have been sold worldwide out of total global sales of one million plug-in electric cars sold since 2008. The world's top selling highway-capable electric car is the Nissan Leaf, released in December 2010 and sold in 46 countries. Global Leaf sales passed the 200,000 unit milestone in December 2015, and the Tesla Model S, released in June 2012, ranks second with over 107,000 units sold worldwide. In this series, we cover stories covering the development of electric vehicles around the world.

Electric Vehicle Series

How Dyson can offer a challenge to Tesla and the electric car giants

Apr 04, 2016 15:17 pm UTC| Insights & Views Business

British vacuum cleaner manufacturer Dyson may be steering into a brand new market. News that the company owned by inventor and entrepreneur, James Dyson, has received UK government research funds for electric vehicle...

Electric Vehicle Series

Digital Currency Revolution

BitGo Engineer Preorders Tesla Model 3 Using Bitcoin

Apr 04, 2016 10:39 am UTC| Digital Currency

Mainstream bitcoin adoption still remains a much debated topic. However, the use of digital currencies as a payment method has been consistently growing. Although their potential to replace conventional fiat currencies...

Electric Vehicle Series

Tesla's gamble on its 'affordable' electric car

Apr 04, 2016 09:12 am UTC| Insights & Views Business

Tesla announced what it calls its most affordable electric vehicle in the Model 3 last week. The car can now be ordered with a deposit of A$1,500 in Australia (US$1,000 in the United States) but wont be delivered until...

Electric Vehicle Series

Tesla Unveils $35k Model 3 Electric Car for the Masses

Apr 01, 2016 08:52 am UTC| Technology

Tesla has finally unveiled the much-awaited Model 3 electric car at the companys design studio in Hawthorne, California, The Verge reported. CEO Elon Musk hopes the new variant will take the electric car to the masses....

Electric Vehicle Series

Graphite: to capitalise Australia needs to invest in conversion

Mar 23, 2016 02:48 am UTC| Insights & Views

Australia can capitalise on graphite if it considers new technologies that convert it to synthetic diamonds and for use in creating carbon fibres, rather than just mining the mineral. Graphite is a form of carbon, the...

Electric Vehicle Series

Lithium: Australia needs to recycle and lease to be part of the boom

Mar 22, 2016 00:56 am UTC| Insights & Views

Australia has an opportunity to capitalise on the increasing global demand for lithium batteries by developing recycling systems and creating models for leasing the resource. Lithium is the third element in the periodic...

Electric Vehicle Series

Climate Change Series

Will cheap gas at the pump stall progress on car emissions?

Mar 18, 2016 00:12 am UTC| Insights & Views Nature

Retail gasoline prices are now as low as they were in the roaring 90s. The 1990s, that is, when the energy crisis of the 1970s had faded from American consumers memories, the economy was strong and the market share of...

11 12 13 14 15

Economy

U.S. Inflation Surges in March as Iran War and Tariffs Drive Prices Higher

Marchs Consumer Price Index is expected to post its sharpest monthly increase in nearly four years, driven by skyrocketing oil prices tied to the U.S.-Iran conflict and the ongoing ripple effects of import tariffs. The...

Asian Stocks Rally on Ceasefire Hopes and Bargain Buying

Asian equity markets climbed higher on Friday, driven by cautious optimism surrounding ceasefire negotiations between Iran and the United States. Regional benchmarks were also on track to close out the week with strong...

White House Warns Staff Over Insider Trading Amid Suspicious Oil Market Bets

The White House issued an internal warning to staff on March 24, cautioning employees against exploiting their government positions to gain an unfair advantage in financial futures markets. The directive came just one day...

U.S. Futures Slip as Iran Ceasefire Uncertainty and CPI Data Weigh on Markets

U.S. stock index futures edged slightly lower Thursday evening as investors exercised caution ahead of high-stakes ceasefire negotiations between Washington and Tehran, while bracing for a closely watched inflation report....

Trump Slams Iran Over Strait of Hormuz Oil Restrictions Amid Fragile Ceasefire

President Donald Trump publicly criticized Iran on Thursday over its handling of oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, escalating tensions just days after a tentative ceasefire agreement between Washington and...

Politics

Global Elections 2026: What Investors and Markets Are Watching

Political uncertainty is sweeping the globe in 2026, with a series of high-stakes elections poised to reshape economic policies and rattle financial markets. From Eastern Europe to South America, investors are keeping a...

Xi Jinping and KMT's Cheng Li-wun Meet in Beijing Amid Cross-Strait Tensions

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Kuomintang (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun in Beijing on Friday, emphasizing that people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait share a common Chinese identity and that the future of...

Pilots Fear Retaliation for Refusing Middle East Flights Amid Ongoing Conflict

Airline pilots expressing safety concerns about flying through Middle Eastern airspace are reportedly facing threats of lost wages or termination if they decline assignments, according to Ron Hay, president of the...

Iran Denies Negotiating Team Traveled to Pakistan for U.S. Talks Amid Ceasefire Uncertainty

Iran has firmly rejected reports suggesting that a diplomatic delegation traveled to Islamabad to engage in negotiations with the United States, calling the claims entirely false. The denial was issued through state-linked...

U.S.-Iran Ceasefire Under Pressure Ahead of Pakistan Peace Talks

A fragile two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran is showing serious cracks just one day before scheduled peace negotiations in Pakistan. Washington has accused Tehran of violating commitments related to the...

Science

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

NASA Artemis II: First Crewed Moon Mission Since Apollo Takes Four Astronauts on 10-Day Lunar Journey

NASAs Artemis II mission launched Wednesday, marking humanitys return to crewed lunar exploration for the first time since the Apollo era. Carrying four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft, this historic 10-day mission...

NASA's Artemis II Mission: First Crewed Lunar Journey Since Apollo

NASA's Artemis II Crew Arrives in Florida for Historic Moon Mission

The four astronauts chosen for NASAs Artemis II mission have touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking the beginning of final launch preparations for the first crewed lunar journey in over 50 years. NASA...

SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has revealed a significant shift in the companys near-term space exploration strategy, announcing that SpaceX is now prioritizing the development of a self-growing city on the Moon rather than focusing...

Technology

Anthropic's Mythos AI Model Sparks Emergency Cybersecurity Meeting With Top U.S. Bank CEOs

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell convened an urgent closed-door meeting with the chief executives of Americas largest banks this week, warning them about serious cybersecurity...

Bank of America Identifies Top Asia-Pacific Semiconductor Stocks Poised for AI-Driven Growth

Bank of America has spotlighted a select group of Asia-Pacific semiconductor companies well-positioned to ride the wave of surging artificial intelligence chip demand, with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company...

China's AI Stocks Surge as Zhipu and MiniMax Hit Record Highs

Chinese artificial intelligence stocks continued their remarkable rally on Thursday, with Zhipu AI and MiniMax Group posting strong gains in Hong Kong trading as a wave of new model launches and product announcements...

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Posts Strong Q3 Earnings, Announces AI-Driven Job Cuts

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank delivered an impressive financial performance in its third quarter, reporting a 12.8% surge in cash earnings to A$137.9 million for the three months ending March 31. The result came in roughly 12%...

Alibaba Shares Slide as Jefferies Slashes Price Target Over AI Spending and Business Losses

Alibabas Hong Kong-listed shares (HK:9988) dropped 2.9% to HK$122.70 on Thursday, emerging as one of the heaviest drags on the Hang Seng Index, which closed 0.6% lower. The selloff came after investment bank Jefferies...