EVs Sales Down 25% Year-Over-Year

Normally this story would simply be an add-on, but when you see a headline suggesting that EV sales were down 25% year-over-year, it needs a stand-alone post, or at least at the top of a new post. A trade magazine is reporting:

If you have been a follower of plug-in vehicle sales in the United States this year, then you knew this month was coming – the bottom of the barrel as it were. Compared to a year ago, August 2015 is EV sales-armageddon!

Put another way, with only the last inventory scraps of the first generation Chevrolet Volt, Toyota Prius PHV, and now obsolete Nissan LEAF left on lots to compete against a strong August of 2014 – it was a total comparative bloodbath.

For August, an estimated 8,972 plug-ins where sold, a slight gain over July, but significantly off 25% from the ~12,172 moved a year ago.

But, according to the linked article, sales will jump come September.

August, 2015, sales: 8,972
August, 2014, sales: 12,172

As usual, a lot of attention to EVs and intermittent energy, but in the big scheme of things, not a lot going on.

***************************

Russia? Doing Just Fine, Thank You -- Bloomberg

Bloomberg/Rigzone is reporting:
At a time when the collapse in crude prices pushes Russia’s economy into a recession, the nation’s oil producers are managing to beat their western counterparts. On measures including cash flow, profit margins and share prices, OAO Rosneft, Lukoil PJSC -- Russia’s two largest oil producers -- and OAO Gazprom Neft are performing better than Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BP Plc or Exxon Mobil Corp.