What happened

Shares of electric-semi maker Nikola (NKLA 3.09%) were trading lower on Tuesday, amid a broad sell-off of technology stocks that was likely triggered by rising government-bond yields.

As of 3 p.m. ET, Nikola's shares were trading down about 5.8% from Friday's closing price.

So what

There was no Nikola-specific bad news driving the stock lower on Tuesday. Nikola was one of many names caught in a sell-off of tech stocks triggered by rising Treasury yields. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose to 1.857% on Tuesday morning, up from 1.771% on Friday and its highest level in two years.

Tuesday's decline followed Nikola's announcement of some positive news: It has a new multi-year agreement to purchase batteries and technology from Proterra (PTRA) for its battery-electric Tre semis. The first Proterra-powered Nikola Tres will ship in the fourth quarter of 2022, the companies said. 

The deal complements a separate battery-supply deal between Nikola and Korean battery giant LG Chem, announced last fall. 

A white Nikola Tre, an electric semi-truck, next to a concrete structure.

Nikola will begin using Proterra batteries in its Tre electric semis later this year. Image source: Nikola.

Now what

After a rough 2020 and a quiet 2021, Nikola has begun 2022 with a series of small but upbeat news announcements. The company made its first deliveries in December, and expects to spend the next several months ramping up production of the battery-powered Tre and preparing to launch the fuel-cell-powered version of the Tre next year.

Electric-vehicle investors can look forward to hearing from Nikola CEO Mark Russell and his team when the company reports its fourth-quarter and full-year 2021 results, likely in mid-February.