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Episode #1066: Today we’re looking at the May economic data from Cox Automotive, how Lucid is reducing its dependence on foreign battery materials and how Meta has increased its ad revenue without increasing volume through targeting.

Show Notes with links:

• May's economic and automotive data show a market adjusting to tighter consumer budgets and lingering workforce shifts. Retail remains steady, but pricing sensitivity is driving realignment in both new and used inventory strategies.
  • Employers added 139K jobs in May, topping forecasts, but downward revisions led to a net 95K job loss.
  • Auto dealer employment rose by 2,100 jobs, though it's still 1.1% below pre-COVID levels.
  • New-vehicle SAAR dropped to 15.6M in May, down from 17.8M in April. Retail SAAR outpaced last year’s.
  • Incentives averaged $3,297—the highest discounting level in five years, and the average price paid dropped to 95.7% of MSRP.
  • Used-vehicle sales dipped 3% month-over-month, but are up 4% year-over-year
    
    
    
• With all the buzz around China’s dominance of EV battery raw materials, Lucid surprised us with a plan to source all of its materials domestically.
  • Lucid’s agreement with Graphite One kicks off natural graphite production in 2028 from Alaska’s Graphite Creek site.
  • They’ve layered this with a 2024 synthetic graphite deal and a 2026 supply agreement with Syrah Resources in Louisiana.
  • All three deals align with IRA requirements, boosting eligibility for EV tax credits and reducing reliance on China, which supplies 90%+ of the world’s anode materials.
  • Graphite One’s Ohio facility will produce enough anode material for up to 2 million EVs per year.
  • Lucid’s Interim CEO said the U.S.-focused strategy “supports our efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of our vehicles.”

• Meta might be all-in on Gen Z vibes, but it’s the boomers and Gen Xers footing the bill. A new Barclays report reveals that older Facebook users see far more ads—because they’re the ones clicking.
  • Facebook shows more ads to users aged 45+ due to higher purchasing power.
  • Those aged 45-54 see the highest ad load at 22%; teens only see 4.3%.
  • Dynamic ad tech like Andromeda and Lattice tailors volume by user value.
  • 97% of Meta’s revenue comes from ads.
  • Meta has actually increased ad revenue without upping total ad volume by targeting high-value users—a shift analysts call “arguably the most bullish development.”

Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.

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