Residual Value Issue Worries Investors. “BMW could lose half its captive finance customers, putting at risk about 25 per cent of group volume” BMW investors must be feeling a bit bilious. When the company announced it lost money in 2008’s 4th quarter, shocked investors dumped the stock and ran for the exits. But after some sober […]
Archive | March, 2009
Porsche Fixes €10 Billion Loan; Investors Ponder VW Move
Extra Funds Raises Possibility Of 75 Per Cent Bid. Consensus Suggest Porsche Will Stay At 51 Per Cent. Investors breathed a sigh of relief when luxury sports car maker Porsche finally negotiated the terms of a massive, €10 billion loan, but aren’t convinced it will use the money to raise its stake in Volkswagen to […]
Daimler Stake Sale Underlines Mercedes, Sector Weakness
Investors Reckon This Could Be The First Of Many Equity Issues. Is It Urgent Need For Capital, Or Result Of Long New Partner Search? Wall Street Journal Wonders If Arab Interest Might Extend To Detroit. Daimler’s decision to sell a 9.1 per cent equity stake to Abu Dhabi’s Aabar Investments shows its capital position was […]
Bankruptcy Looms For GM As Wagoner Is Fired
Chrysler Told Do A Deal With Fiat, Or It’s Curtains. Obama Rejects Plans From GM, Chrysler As Unviable. Former General Motors CEO and Chairman Rick Wagoner fought to the bitter end against bankruptcy, but that prospect is looming large after President Barack Obama’s ultimatum. Obama said GM now has 60 days to come up with […]
Despite Green Shoots Claim, Europe Recovery Long Way Off
German Scrap Plan Brings Forward Sales. European Sales Still Not At The Bottom. Europe’s Manufacturers Will Emerge Stronger; But When. Investment bank Goldman Sachs raised a few eyebrows in Europe earlier this week talking about the green shoots of recovery in the automotive business, when just about everyone else is still wondering whether the recession […]
Honda Insight review
Hybrid Claims Fantastic Fuel Economy Will It Get Close To 60 mpg In The Real World? Undercuts Main Rival Toyota Prius Price By Almost £2,500 *** out of 5 Looks Nice, Non-descript interior, excellent storage “It remains to be seen whether this fuel economy will be achieved at the expense of fuming motorists held up in […]
VW Golf VI review
Hard To Fault This Sixth Attempt At Perfection Quality, Driveability, Comfort Beyond Criticism? I’ll Try: Bland Looks, High Price Won’t Win Buyers Golf Said To Beat Renault, Peugeot For Dynamics, Economy **** out of 5 “VW’s Golf offers 10 to 15 per cent superior fuel economy at a 10 per cent lower total cost of ownership” […]
Daimler-Mercedes Close In On Cooperation Pact
Don’t Do It, Pleads Morgan Stanley. The much flagged cooperation deal between BMW and Daimler is moving closer, with arguments focusing on a possible cross shareholding agreement. Der Spiegel magazine reported that Daimler and BMW might take seven per cent stakes in each other, in addition to the cooperation on the development of technology under […]
Scrapping Plans Slow Sales Slide, But Implications Opaque
Hyundai A Big Beneficiary in Germany. Most Sales Seem To Be Of Small Cars With Miniscule Profits. The fall in Western Europe’s car sales has been slowed by scrapping incentives in Germany and France, but investors worry that the quality of the sales in terms of profit margins and origin, are not going to be […]
VW Battens Down Hatches After Record 2008
Losses Expected For First Quarter, Maybe Second Quarter Too. Volkswagen managed to stave off the effects of the credit crunch longer than most, but is resigned to a testing time in 2009. It was the best of times for VW in 2008, with operating profit of €6.3 billion. Sales revenue rose 4.5 per cent to […]