South Korea's LG Chem Ltd. said Jan. 5 that it will supply lithium-ion batteries to U.S.-based Eaton Corp. for four years starting later this year, according to The Wall Street Journal.

CODA Automotive, announced Jan. 6 the first close of a Series C preferred investment round totaling US$25 million.

Tianjin Qingyuan Electric Vehicle Co. hopes to significantly boost sales of its self-developed electric models in the United States, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said on Jan. 6, according to Reuters.

Automakers generally reported big sales drops in the U.S. and Japan markets in 2009, as noted in numerous press reports including Nikkei news service and Automotive News.

It is unclear if naphtha premiums will change significantly throughout 2010. For example, an Egyptian supplier of naphtha recently sold a large tender of shipments for the first half of 2010 at lower premiums fetched in the second half of 2009.

After a 10-day climb, oil futures fell below US$83 Jan. 7. The price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for February delivery settled at US$82.66 per barrel (bbl), down 52¢. Brent crude for February delivery increased closed at $81.51/bbl, a 38¢ decline.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Jan. 7 proposed the strictest health standards to date for smog.

American Trucking Associations (ATA) officials on Jan. 4 termed attacks raised by Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and the Sierra Club over a Port of Long Beach diesel truck clean-up program deal as “baseless” and “inaccurate.”