In this issue

On 1 November, world leaders will descend on Glasgow for the COP26 climate change conference to accelerate the transition to a zero-emission world.

The main goal is to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, through reaching a global peak of greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible.

The transport industry will undoubtedly come under scrutiny at the conference, with transportation accounting for a quarter of global direct CO2 emissions.

Total emissions from the sector in fact continued to rise in 2019 – driven predominantly by all modes of road transport. While EV uptake continues to grow, overall figures remain short of the mark, with the ongoing delays in the new car sector also likely to stunt the sector’s growth.

In this digital edition we take a look at what companies can do to reduce their carbon footprint. In our lead feature, our reporter Chris Farnell speaks to leaders at Lloyds Banking Group, Alphera and LeasePlan to discuss their strategies with regards to the climate challenges.

We also speak to Energy Saving Trust, an organisation dedicated to helping companies decarbonise their fleets through a range of programmes and incentives.

In our comment section, James Fairclough of AA Cars questions whether leasing could become the gateway to widespread electric vehicle ownership.

We also take a deeper dive into the global semiconductor chip shortage, crunching the numbers around its impact and assessing how long it will really go on for.

Ross Thompson, lecturer at Arden University, then explores the role that blockchain will have to play in the automotive sector moving forward.

Welcome to the first Motor Finance digital edition of 2021.

Roughly a year ago, reports of a deadly virus in the Wuhan district of China began gaining real traction in the global press. Videos of overran hospitals and deserted streets flooded social media, but for most people (myself included), the virus still seemed like a distant problem in a distant land.

Fast forward a few weeks and most of the world’s population found itself in various forms of lockdown. Governments scrambled to alleviate the immense stress on health services, while industry screeched to a halt.

Automotive was one of the most adversely affected sectors, as factories and dealerships were forced to close their doors and shut down production. Government schemes and support packages were rolled out across the world to support struggling businesses, with some countries launching automotive-specific rescue packages worth billions of pounds.

The summer months brought a welcome fall in Covid-19 cases and a relaxation of lockdown measures, however hopes of a V-shaped recovery were soon dashed by the emergence of a second wave of the virus. Recovery remains fractured and unpredictable, but with vaccines being rolled out at a rapid rate, there is now real hope that we are approaching the end of this very dark tunnel.

In this edition we look back at how various automotive industries around the world reacted to the outbreak, and question what lasting impact Covid-19 will have on consumer behaviour and business processes.