Shares in South Korea's LGES drop more than 7% after Ford cancels EV battery deal
FILE PHOTO: Battery cells with the logo of LG Energy Solution are displayed at the company headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, April 23, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji/File Photo
SEOUL, Dec 18 : Shares of LG Energy Solution dropped as much as 7.6 per cent in morning trade on Thursday after the company announced a day earlier that Ford Motor had cancelled an electric vehicle (EV) battery supply deal.
The South Korean battery maker said in a regulatory filing that the termination followed a notice from Ford after the automaker decided to halt production of some EV models due to policy changes and shifts in the outlook for EV demand.
Analysts noted that because the cancelled contract had been scheduled to begin in January 2027 it would be difficult to immediately secure new orders to replace the lost volume, making delays in improving utilisation rates at LGES' European plant in 2027 inevitable.
The benchmark KOSPI was trading down 1.4 per cent as of 0009 GMT.
