Ford (F) is "monitoring" Tesla's (TSLA) price cuts, and will adjust its own EV prices "as the market sees fit," says Darren Palmer, VP of Electric Vehicle Programs at Ford Model E Pricing. Palmer joined Yahoo Finance's Rachelle Akuffo and Pras Subramanian on Yahoo Finance Live, as Ford's F-150 Lightning launched in Norway, entering the global EV market. Palmer says Ford is "seeing massive demand" for products, and is "increasing production" to meet that demand. Palmer adds that Ford is currently "completely sold out" of all EV vehicles at the moment. When asked if Tesla's discounts will affect future pricing, Palmer says Ford is "monitoring the situation" and will adjust based on "how our customers value our products."
Ford is also preparing for potential headwinds from materials costs and availability. Palmer says Ford is focusing on "vertically integrating" its new Tennessee factory, as well as securing contracts on things like battery materials, "that are likely to become scarce soon." Palmer says Ford is also focusing on new types of batteries that use less "precious or scarce chemicals." Less reliance on those risky chemicals will allow Ford to lower prices and "be resilient to supply issues" moving forward.
Key Video Moments:
00:00:20 - Ford seeing "massive demand" for EVs
00:00:50 - Price war: Ford "monitoring the situation"
00:01:30 - Focused on securing contracts for materials that are "likely to become scarce"
00:01:45 - Batteries less reliant on precious metals will allow Ford to lower prices.
