China’s Xiaomi Unveils Electric Car in Bid to Compete with Tesla, Porsche
Chinese consumer electronics company Xiaomi revealed Thursday its long-awaited electric car, the Xiaomi SU7, as it looks to enter the competitive electric vehicle market and take on industry giants like Tesla and Porsche. CEO Lei Jun announced that the model, which the company spent over 10 billion yuan to develop, is in trial production and will be hitting the domestic market in a few months. However, Xiaomi declined to share the car’s price or specific release date at this time.
According to Lei, the Xiaomi SU7, pronounced “Sue Qi” in Mandarin, outperforms rivals like Porsche’s Taycan and Tesla’s Model S in areas such as acceleration. This announcement comes as Xiaomi aims to diversify its product offerings beyond consumer electronics.
In other investment news, fund managers are expressing caution about the outlook for European stocks going into 2024, according to a recent survey by Bank of America. While 68% of investors see upside for European equities in the coming year, 65% also forecast near-term downside. The survey, which included 254 participants with a total of $691 billion in assets under management, reflects apprehension about the European economy and stock market.
However, Piper Sandler has identified three small and medium-sized pharmaceutical stocks as its “top picks” for 2024, citing their attractive valuations, product approvals, and innovation plans. The investment bank’s optimism comes as the biotechnology sector shows signs of recovery following a difficult year. Interest rate hikes are expected to pause or reverse, which is seen as beneficial for biotech financing, and M&A activity in the sector remains strong.
For more details on each of these investment stories, readers can refer to the full reports on CNBC Pro.
By Evelyn Cheng and Amala Balakrishner