🔌 Electric F-150 FTW

Plus: Sunshine for small biz | Wednesday, January 05, 2022

Open in app View in browser     Axios Closer By Hope King and Nathan Bomey ·Jan 05, 2022 Happy 🐪 day. If you can envision riding in a Ford F-150 to buy an American Girl doll, this is the Closer for you. Today's newsletter is 700 words, a 2½-minute read. 🔔 The dashboard: The S&P sank 1.9% as investors reacted to news that the Fed could become more aggressive in raising interest rates. Biggest gainer? Steelmaker Nucor Corp. (+4.8%) amid a broader rise in the sector. Biggest decliner? Energy technology supplier Enphase Energy (-11.8%) shares fell after a stock downgrade from Bank of America.     1 big thing: Pickups going plug-in The Ford F-150 Lightning electric pickup on display at the Los Angeles Auto Show on Nov. 18, 2021. Frederick J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images   The most popular American pickups are poised to test whether the nation's obsession with trucks can go electric, Nathan writes. Ford on Tuesday announced plans to nearly double production capacity of its forthcoming F-150 Lightning amid what it called "soaring customer demand." Then GM today revealed an electric Chevrolet Silverado at the Consumer Electronics Show. Why it matters: The F-series and Silverado are the No. 1 and No. 3 best-selling pickups in America, respectively. If they go electric successfully, that could pave the way for automakers to transition the rest of their vehicle lineups into EVs, helping curb emissions from gas-powered cars. State of play: Electric vehicle leader Tesla's market cap is more than five times bigger than GM's and Ford's combined. But GM and Ford sold 1.26 million Silverado and F-series pickups in the U.S. in 2021 — 34% more than Tesla's total vehicle sales worldwide. What's next: GM and Ford are positioned to jolt initial sales by tapping established relationships with fleet buyers, such as businesses and governments, that need a steady flow of new pickups and are eager to cut emissions. Fleet buyers "have very predictable patterns of movement, so you can plan charging [logistics] better," Autotrader analyst Michelle Krebs says. Yes, but: Reaching consumers won't come easy. "Converting buyers from gas and diesel powered V8 and V6 engines may be a tough sell," AP reports. Our thought bubble: As luxury automakers, Tesla and startup EV maker Rivian can charge a lot and can bypass traditional dealerships. But Ford and GM are poised to help EVs make significant inroads into middle America, where their brands are more well-established. With both EV pickups starting at around $40,000, they will not be out of reach for traditional pickup buyers.     2. Charted: Toyota ascends to No. 1 Data: Kelley Blue Book; Chart: Thomas Oide/Axios GM and Ford may be making progress on electric vehicles, but Toyota became the best-selling automaker in the U.S. in 2021, usurping GM for the first time with strong sales of hybrid vehicles and SUVs. GM held the title since the Great Depression but has been losing market share for decades. Be smart: GM's slide is partly by design, Nathan notes. The automaker has discontinued a slew of passenger car models to focus on more-profitable SUVs and pickups.     3. What's happening 📀 The Grammy Awards are on hold after the Recording Academy and CBS canceled the Jan. 31 show due to COVID risks. (Recording Academy) ✈️ Airlines canceled 1,500 flights today, the 11th straight day of more than 1,000 cancellations. (WSJ)     A message from Axios Axios HQ's workplace communications report     Over 70% of communicators say their internal updates are concise and engaging. Nearly 60% of employees disagree. Get a deep dive on the workplace communications crisis and how to improve it. Get the free report     4. Small businesses growing more optimistic A bakery in Walnut Creek, Calif. Photo: Gado/Getty Images, courtesy Sftm   Inflation, labor shortages and supply chain issues are undermining the economy, but midsize and small businesses are still hopeful about the new year, Nathan writes. The big picture: 83% of midsize businesses and 71% of small businesses "are optimistic about their own performance in 2022," according to JPMorgan Chase's 2022 Business Leaders Outlook Survey out today. That's up from 77% and 63% at the dawn of 2021, respectively. To compete with larger, well-resourced companies, smaller employers are finding ways to boost wages and benefits. 61% of small businesses are poised to offer health insurance in 2022, up from 52% in 2021, says JPMorgan. What they're saying: "Those are the kind of things they realized they had to do to retain workers and keep them," JPMorgan economist Jim Glassman tells Axios.   Share Axios and earn rewards If you like this newsletter, your friends may, too! Refer your friends and get free Axios swag when they sign up. Be a good friend and share   5. Teaching kids to stand up to racism American Girl doll Corinne Tan and her little sister, Gwynn. Photo: Business Wire   A Chinese American doll is trending after American Girl, owned by Mattel, released its "Girl of the Year," writes Hope. Why it matters: Corinne Tan, the character's name, is the first Chinese American doll in the 21-year history of the limited-edition line.  The big picture: The nearly 40-year-old toy brand's decision is part of a broader set of corporate actions made in response to attacks against Asians in the wake of the pandemic.  One of Tan's storylines involves being told she has "Kung flu" at a skating rink. After watching her mom confront a man making a racist joke outside their family restaurant, she learns "the words and courage" to stand up to her own racist bully. Read the full story.     6. What they're saying "It's January, so it's a time of New Year's resolutions and wanting to do something different in your diet." — KFC's U.S. president Kevin Hochman on the company's decision to add Beyond Meat's plant-based chicken to its menus for a limited time.     A message from Axios Axios HQ's workplace communications report     Over 70% of communicators say their internal updates are concise and engaging. Nearly 60% of employees disagree. Get a deep dive on the workplace communications crisis and how to improve it. Get the free report   🙌 Thanks for reading! Have a good one, and remember to take care of yourself. Like this email style and format? 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