(Yicai Global) Nov. 6 -- Shares in Chinese new-energy vehicle maker Nio have skyrocketed almost 37 percent on news that it plans to develop a level four autonomous car in tandem with Intel-backed Mobileye and sell a bunch of the vehicles to its new partner.

Its stock [NYSE:NIO] closed yesterday at USD2.34, pushing well clear of the USD1 threshold that could trigger a forced delisting, where its share prices had neared earlier this year.

Nio and the Israeli Intel arm will build an autonomous vehicle based on the carmaker's NP2 finished-vehicle platform, the Shanghai-based firm said on WeChat yesterday. Mobileye will provide its EyeQ chip and software for the car while Nio will design its autopilot system and mass produce the vehicle.

Once in production, Mobileye intends to buy several specially configured versions of the cars -- which by SAE International standards should be able to operate without driver intervention in special geo-fenced areas -- to move into the smart travel services sector.

The move could help Nio progress further in the right direction after a rough ride earlier this year. It delivered 2,526 cars in October, up 25 percent from September and 61 percent annually to set a single-month high for 2019.

It had been skating on thin ice following a CNY340 million (USD48.5 million) recall that extend its second-quarter loss to CNY3.3 billion, some 25 percent wider than the previous quarter's deficit. This triggered a major sell of that saw Nio shares tumbling to just USD1.19 apiece last month.

Editor: James Boynton