The Trial Balance is CFO’s weekly preview of stories, stats and events to help you prepare.
Part 1 — Automakers brace for a challenging 2025
The automotive industry, whose sales and innovation data provide a key metric of consumer spending and economic health, is grappling with major challenges. Efforts to innovate have stalled, leadership turnover is rampant and many manufacturers are navigating questionable rebrands, high-risk partnerships or costly innovation strategies that could lead to bankruptcy.
Here’s a list of automakers who are looking at big challenges in the upcoming year:
- Stellantis, which oversees a variety of brands that have stretched its profitability thin, recently saw its CEO Carlos Tavares step down due to conflicts with the board. The company’s current CFO Doug Ostermann has been in his role for just two months following the departure of his predecessor Natalie Knight.
- At Nissan, two executives have anonymously stated the company has less than 14 months to fix its current direction. Shortly after, CFO Stephen Ma departed. While some reports suggest Honda might acquire Nissan, the company’s declining reliability and EV push have left the brand on shaky ground.
- Ford, despite losing six figures on every electric vehicle sold, remains one of the only automakers besides Tesla never to declare bankruptcy. Current vice president of finance Sherry House is set to replace CFO John Lawler early next year, and will likely have her hands full. Ford has recently faced record-high fines from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for safety failures dating back to 2020, compounded by declining sales, quality issues and a declining brand reputation. These challenges have caused a steep drop in the company’s share price and could push Ford toward its first bankruptcy without a turnaround.
- Luxury automaker Jaguar has drawn attention with its upcoming line of ultra-luxury electric vehicles, set to debut at Miami Art Week. The rebrand has garnered both praise and criticism but has succeeded in reigniting interest in a brand that halted new car sales in 2023 to address sales challenges.
- Rivian, which recently received a $1.1 billion loan from the Biden administration, continues to struggle despite partnering with Volkswagen to revitalize its brand. The company’s push to integrate its technology into Volkswagen’s electric vehicles is part of a joint venture that has reportedly made up to $5 billion available to Rivian.
- Tesla’s challenges are intertwined with politics, particularly California’s latest electric vehicle (EV) tax credit policy which doesn’t allow EV tax credits for Tesla owners, according to Governor Gavin Newsom. The company saw $1.1 trillion in growth this November and remains the top seller of electric vehicles in the U.S. However, CEO Elon Musk has repeatedly said Tesla isn’t a car company, remaining vague about its direction in vehicle production and self-driving technology research.
Part 2 — This Week
Here’s a list of important market events slated for the week ahead.
Monday, Dec. 2
- S&P final U.S. manufacturing PMI, Nov.
- ISM manufacturing, Nov.
- Construction spending, Oct.
Tuesday, Dec. 3
- Job openings, Oct.
- Auto sales, Nov.
Wednesday, Dec. 4
- ADP employment, Nov.
- S&P final U.S. services PMI, Nov.
- ISM services, Nov.
- Factory orders, Oct.
- Fed Beige Book
Thursday, Dec. 5
- Initial jobless claims, week of Nov. 30
- U.S. trade deficit, Oct.
Friday, Dec. 6
- U.S. employment report, Nov.
- U.S. unemployment rate, Nov.
- U.S. hourly wages, Nov.
- Consumer sentiment (prelim), Dec.
- Consumer credit, Oct.
Part 3 — CFO Earnings Dispatch, M&A in 2025 and Kyndryl’s CFO
This week, CFO.com will publish a new edition of The CFO Earnings Dispatch (12/3), a story highlighting M&A expectations in 2025 (12/4), a Q&A with Kyndryl CFO David Wyshner (12/5) and a story on the dot com bubble and how it compares to the current AI market (12/6).
