Welcome back, today is Tuesday, October twentieth, and we begin with Foxconn buying into Mitsubishi Electric's EV parts business, per Just Auto. Foxconn is set to take a fifty percent stake in Mitsubishi Electric Mobility, valued at one hundred fifteen billion yen. That is Just Auto, and per that reporting the partners will jointly operate the business on completion. A contract electronics manufacturer holding half of a tier-one mobility components supplier is a concrete marker of how far contract manufacturing has pushed into the vehicle supply chain. Automotive World places the deal in a continuing Foxconn drive into Japanese automotive, an account that describes Mitsubishi as the only domestic automaker so far responding with enthusiasm. Industry reaction leans toward reading this as one move in a pattern, set alongside other half-owned mobility tie-ups in chassis and commercial vehicles. A recurring note is that the arrangement looks two-way, with driver assistance technology flowing back into the buyer's platforms, and that a completion date roughly two years out makes any competitive effect slow moving. Also today, following our earlier report that Unifor members would vote on strike authorization, that mandate is now in hand. Automotive News, citing the Canadian Press, reports Stellantis workers in Canada have voted to give the union a mandate to strike, with talks still stalled. Per that reporting, the union says it still believes there is a path to a new collective agreement. One procedural step is outstanding. That same account notes a no board report must still be filed before Unifor could strike, the Canadian notice that ends conciliation and starts the clock to a legal walkout. Schedule risk for Canadian assembly and the supplier tier is therefore live, but not immediate. Industry reaction leans skeptical that a strike mandate carries much leverage here, with a recurring argument that stopped production would cost the company less than it costs the workforce. Now to Michigan. Automotive News reports General Motors plans to close Brownstown Battery Assembly while repurposing a nearby Detroit building that was initially intended for hydrogen fuel cell production. Per that account, GM has taken over the lease on the three hundred thousand square foot site, and the decision follows the cancellation of its hydrogen effort and a scaling back of electric vehicle output. For capacity planning, that is one automaker retiring both an EV and a hydrogen bet in the same metro area. Reaction in the trade leans toward reading the closure as part of a broader retreat from alternative powertrains, with a recurring concern about how large a share of the region's remaining manufacturing employment the lost roles represent. Separately, the Franco-German position on emissions is now a formal ask. Just Auto reports France and Germany are seeking to ease proposed European Union vehicle emissions requirements, with the two governments saying they want to transform the automotive sector while keeping climate ambition intact. The requirements at issue are still proposals, and that account carries no effective date, so nothing yet moves for compliance teams planning capital around the current limits. Industry reaction leans toward framing this as a trade-off between emissions targets and keeping a European manufacturing base intact. Some industry voices argue the proposal still falls short of the flexibilities carmakers say they need, which would leave the dispute unsettled. Now, a few more headlines moving the trade today. Mercedes-Benz has expanded its automated driving alliance with Nvidia. Per Just Auto, the companies say MB.OS will carry new driving functions and over-the-air updates. Automotive News reports Stellantis supplier Dakkota will close its Detroit plant and lay off three hundred ninety-seven, a site built on a fifty-five million dollar investment to supply the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango. Mexico has limited its auto parts tariff exemption to carmakers already in the country, per Just Auto, a clarification to a decree published October thirteenth. Toyota Motor Europe is pressing the EU to count Japan, Turkey and the UK as Made in Europe. Per Automotive News, executives say excluding those plants would penalize automakers building there, as talks over the Industrial Accelerator Act intensify. And finally, Li Auto made its European premiere at the Paris Motor Show with the European market Li 6, per Just Auto, one more Chinese entrant in segments European incumbents price heavily.