It has been a rollercoaster ride for the automotive industry in 2020: from the COVID-19 pandemic and oil price wars to heightened geo-political tension and scathing reports on promising start-ups. All eyes are on 2021 for a period of stability, but a new report by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) suggests that recovery will be “slow and painful.”

“After a disastrous 2020 for the global automotive sector, we now expect an upturn in 2020, but carmakers across the world will need to seek out growth pockets while pushing through extensive cost-cutting programmes,” commented Ana Nicholls, Director of Industry Operations at the EIU. The report, ‘Industries in 2021: a slow, painful recovery’, was published in October.

The electric vehicle (EV) sector should…