Ducati says that sales of the 2021 Multistrada V4 family have already reached 5,000 worldwide - just six months after its launch. Motorcycle number 5,000 was purchased by a German Ducatista called Karl-Heinz Lebensieg, who ordered a V4 S Sport version in full configuration from the Ducati dealer in Ingolstadt.
BDN reports that Super Soco has become the UK's fastest growing bike brand overall, in addition to being the fastest growing electric motorcycle or scooter brand. "Super Soco has claimed a 17.5% market share increase in the electric sector and a 1.3% rise versus all motorcycle and scooter brands available in the UK. It also accounted for 50% of ePTW registrations for April and a third of year-to-date ePTW market share". Its 4 kW CPx scooter model has become "the highest-registered ePTW and is now ranked eighth in the MCIA’s top-ten chart of highest-registered motorcycles and scooters in the UK during the first four months of this year".
The Biden administration proposed that a minimum global corporate tax rate be set at 15%. America put forward the plan during the latest round of tax negotiations at the OECD, a mostly rich-country club. It wants to deter companies from shifting profits into low-tax jurisdictions - American multinationals book more foreign profit in Bermuda than in China! Biden plans to raise America's corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%.
British distributor Nevis Marketing (Shark helmets, TCX boots, Richa, Furygan, Interphone etc.) has added exclusive UK distribution of Dainese to the inventory held at its 10.000 sq m warehouse at Ringwood, Hampshire, in southern England.
Monster Energy and Dorna Sports have signed a multi-year sponsorship contract extension that confirms the future of a long-standing partnership for MotoGP. Monster will also take top billing at two Grands Prix in 2021: The Gran Premi Monster Energy de Catalunya and the Monster Energy British Grand Prix. "Monster Energy has been a vital part of the MotoGP paddock for many years as a title sponsor for both events and teams".
Hero Motocorp and Gogoro have announced a strategic partnership joint venture to introduce Gogoro's battery swapping network to accelerate the change to electric transportation in India. The companies will collaborate on electric vehicle development to bring Hero-branded, powered by Gogoro Network vehicles to market. The Gogoro Network is an open platform for battery swapping and smart mobility services.
Motorrad Magazin in Germany awarded first place in its Best Brand accessories and customisation category to ADV specialist Touratech.
Vespa has celebrated its 75th anniversary and production of 19m scooters by winning a prestigious 'Webby' Award - in the "Websites and Mobile Sites: Car Sites & Car Culture" category for the Vespa.com website. Presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS) - the leading international organisation rewarding excellence on the Internet - the 'Webby' Awards have been described as "Internet's highest honour" by the New York Times. The 25th edition of the awards saw the presentation of some 13,500 candidacies, from more than 70 countries, which together collected more than 2.2m votes.
The MIC has announced Q1 sales of new motorcycles and scooters through March increased +37.2% "among leading brands", compared to the same period last year. The data comes from the MIC Retail Sales Reporting System which gathers new-unit numbers from 14 leading manufacturers and distributors in the U.S.
Only a year since announcing its plans, BMW is starting battery component production in Germany at Leipzig and Regensburg and expanding its e-drive production network. The BMW Group is investing a total of around € 790m in expanding production capacity for drivetrain components for electrified vehicles at its Dingolfing, Leipzig, Regensburg and Steyr locations between 2020 and 2022.
Sources: AMD, IDN, FT, Reuters, PSB, MPN, BDN, MCN, AP, Bloomberg, MSNW, Electrek, electricmotorcycles.news, RideApart.com, Motor1.com, Cycle World, motorbikewriter.com
