Mike Smitka on the Auto Industry, Japan, and China
Mike SmitkaI write about the global auto industry, with occasional posts on the economies of China and Japan, and on economics as a science.
| Platform |  | Pricing | Only free issues | Publishes | Weekly |
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| Issues | 50 | Founded | 2 years ago | Last Issue | 21 days ago |
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smitka.substack.comLatest Issues
2026Q3: China’s Car Market Decline Continues
Preface
China’s car market continues to shrink, and the government will begin cutting VAT rebates on exports next year, hitting the one bright spot for companies such as BYD, Chery and Geely. Lots of details follow. I conclude by askin...
Knowledge Creation as a Divergent Process
While almost all of my recent posts are on the auto industry, many older posts focus on other areas. After all, I spent decades teaching a variety of economics courses, including economic history, and living in and writing about Japan.
...
Telecoms as Carmakers: Xiaomi and Huawei
Introduction
Apple started work on an EV but dropped the project. One is Huawei, the diversified electronics maker that holds the largest share of the domestic Chinese market. The other is Xiaomi, #3 globally after Samsung and Apple, b...
VW’s Turnaround Challenge
Preface
My in-depth analysis of VW was published today here on SeekingAlpha. It’s behind a paywall, and in fairness to them I don’t detail that content here
VW’s Challenge
VW’s restructuring in Europe faces challenges, with lab...
Robotaxis: Don't Overestimate the Market
Introduction
Robotaxis offer an additional margin of competition in the taxi-cum-ridehail market. It’s easy to forget, however, that people are not giving up their cars en masse for Uber, and that robotaxis face limitations that mean t...
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Authors
The writers behind this newsletter.
I'm a retired economist focused on the global auto industry. I also taught about the Japanese and Chinese economies for 30+ years, with languages and 8 years in Asia. I've visited 100+ auto & supplier factories in Europe, the Americas and Asia. Etc
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