DETROIT, Michigan: General Motors is rolling back part of its electric-vehicle push, booking a US$6 billion writedown as weaker demand and policy shifts reshape the U.S. EV market.

The largest U.S. automaker said this week it would take the charge to unwind some electric-vehicle investments, reflecting reduced production plans and the knock-on effects across its supply chain. The move comes as automakers respond to fading EV demand and policy changes under President Donald Trump's administration.

Most of the writedown — a $4.2 billion cash charge — is tied to contract cancellations and settlements with suppliers that had prepared for much higher EV volumes, GM said in a regulatory filing. The company will record the charge as a special item in its fourth-quarter earnings report.

The announcement follows a much larger writedown by crosstown rival Ford Motor, which in December said it would take a $19.5 billion hit over several quarters after canceling multiple EV programs.

GM said the writedown would not affect its U.S. lineup of roughly a dozen electric models, the industry's broadest portfolio of battery-powered vehicles. "We plan to continue to make these models available to consumers," the company said in its filing.

Shares of General Motors fell about two percent in after-hours trading after closing the regular session up 3.9 percent at $85.13.

Big EV Bet Meets a Cooling Market

GM was among the most aggressive global automakers in betting on EVs, at one point pledging to essentially phase out internal-combustion vehicles by 2035. While the company has not publicly walked back that goal, analysts have sharply cut EV sales forecasts for the U.S., GM's most profitable market.

Many automakers have been dialing back EV production since last summer, when Trump's sweeping tax and spending package darkened the sector's outlook. Sales of battery-powered vehicles dropped sharply after the $7,500 federal tax credit for EV buyers ended on September 30.

Deliveries of GM's EVs dipped following the loss of the credit. The company's EV sales had gained momentum in late 2024 after years of manufacturing setbacks, helped by the rollout of lower-cost models that pushed GM to No. 2 in U.S. EV sales behind Tesla.

Still, EV sales fell sharply after the incentive expired. GM's EV sales dropped 43 percent in the fourth quarter, following record sales in the prior three months as buyers rushed to lock in the tax break.

Supply Chain, China and Future Charges

GM said it expects additional EV-related charges in 2026 as talks with suppliers continue, though it anticipates those costs will be lower than in 2025.

The automaker also disclosed a separate $1.1 billion fourth-quarter charge linked to the ongoing restructuring of its China joint venture.

GM has already begun scaling back EV-related operations. Last year, it recorded a $1.6 billion EV writedown, halted EV battery production for six months at two joint-venture plants, cut output to one shift at an EV-only factory in Detroit, and abandoned plans for a new Michigan EV plant. That facility will instead build gas-powered Cadillac Escalades and full-size pickups.

Industry-wide EV Slowdown

EV sales across the U.S. auto industry rose just 1.2 percent in 2025 from a year earlier, according to research firm Omdia — a sharp slowdown from prior years. Automotive data provider Edmunds expects EVs to account for about six percent of U.S. vehicle sales in 2026, down from 7.4 percent in 2025.

GM gained overall U.S. market share in 2025, driven by strong sales of gas-powered pickups and SUVs as well as EVs. But some analysts have questioned its limited exposure to hybrids.

"GM's lack of hybrid exposure could partially reverse recent market share gains," CFRA equity analyst Garrett Nelson said, pointing to the growing popularity of hybrid vehicles.

Ford, which has effectively scrapped its planned second generation of EVs, is now pinning its hopes on a new architecture aimed at lower-cost models, starting with a $30,000 electric pickup in 2027. Ford CEO Jim Farley described the shift as painful but necessary as the market cooled.

"When the market really changed over the last couple of months, that was really the impetus for us to make the call," Farley told Reuters in December.