Electric buses are set to command the bus market worldwide by the late 2020s — and, in 2040, they could make up 80% of the global municipal bus fleet, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF).
Why it matters: While personal electric vehicle penetration has grown more slowly than many advocates hoped, buses are a more practical means of achieving greater levels of implementation across the world. According to BNEF, nearly all electric buses will have a lower cost of ownership than conventional buses by next year.
Tesla almost reached Elon Musk's goal of producing 5,000 Model 3 electric sedans per week during the last week of its second quarter, reports Reuters. The 5,000th car made it through final quality checks around 5 a.m. PT — mere hours after Musk's midnight deadline.
Why it matters: Achieving the 5000-per-week production level for the Model 3 during the second quarter was vital for Tesla, even if it came a few hours late. The company has previously fallen short of production targets during the slower-than-expected ramp-up.
In an interview on Fox today, President Trump appeared to change his claim that Saudi Arabia had committed to pumping an additional 2 million barrels of oil a day, saying instead that OPEC countries "are going to have to put out more oil."
Why it matters: Resurrected U.S. sanctions on Iran will reduce OPEC supply to the market, and are already pushing up prices. In a tweet yesterday, Trump asserted that he had persuaded Saudi King Salman to raise production, but last evening, the White House said it was more like Salman agreed only to meet global demand. The new interview with Maria Bartiromo suggests that any commitment in the conversation may have been even vaguer.
A record number of 49 million people will travel by car, train or plane on Independence Day weekend, the American Automobile Association says in a new report.
Why it matters: Many cities in the sun belt or the west coast are seeing tourist mobility and the holiday weekends contribute to that. Consumer spending and confidence has been steadily on the rise and is expected to continue in the summer months.
President Trump said on Twitter Saturday morning that King Salman of Saudi Arabia has agreed to increase its oil production by as much as 2 million barrels per day "because of the turmoil and disfunction in Iran and Venezuela."
The big picture, from Axios' Ben Geman: A number of analysts have pointed out that, by publicly pressing OPEC for higher production in recent weeks and months, Trump could be seeking to gain politically from a production-increase that the cartel and Russia were slated to make anyway, because the market has tightened considerably. Elevated oil prices — and hence, higher gasoline prices than in recent years — could be politically perilous for Republicans in an election year.
