Banker Says Situation Unsustainable; Sees Losses Through 2016 Possibilities Include Reopening Union Contract, “Contained Bankruptcy” But Others Point To Action Already Taken, Urge It To Hang In There “GM would be better off with a profitable three per cent share of Europe than a loss making eight per cent” GM’s attempt to fix its loss-making […]
Archive | Industry Analysis 2011
Europe’s Car Manufacturers Prepare For Rocky 2012
Production Slashed At Fiat, Sales Projections Under Pressure Elsewhere “There is no doubt that the market will be declining next year in Europe. The only question is how big of a decline” – Ghosn Europe’s car makers are hunkering down to protect themselves from the eurozone financial crisis by slashing production schedules as they face […]
GM Europe Could Lose $600 Million In 2011, $1 Billion In 2012
Banker Says Situation Unsustainable; Sees Losses Through 2016 Possibilities Include Reopening Union Contract, “Contained Bankruptcy” But Others Point To Action Already Taken, Urge It To Hang In There “GM would be better off with a profitable three per cent share of Europe than a loss making eight per cent” GM’s attempt to fix its loss-making […]
Euro Collapse Could Mean The $30,000/£20,000 Smart Car
Euro Collapse Could Mean The $30,000/£20,000 Smart Car “If Germany is ever to re-establish “real money”, German manufacturer margins would be reported in Deutschmarks, but would collapse.” The nightmare for Germany’s premium car manufacturers is that Europe’s financial crisis kills the euro single currency zone and forces a return to its traditional currency the deutschmark, […]
Opel-Vauxhall Needs Radical Action To Stem Losses – report
Opel-Vauxhall Needs Radical Action To Stem Losses – report German Union Contract Might Have To Be Reopened Losses Could Hit $600 million in 2011, $1 billion in 2012 GM’s attempt to fix its loss-making European subsidiary Opel-Vauxhall are failing, and drastic measures like reopening contract talks with labor unions are required if the drain on […]
Outraged By Taxpayer Gift To VW? How About Welsh Rallying
Outraged By Taxpayer Gift To VW? How About Welsh Rallying If you were as angered as me when you heard that your hard-earned tax was given to fund millionaire Bentley supercar buyers when its owner was flush-with profits Volkswagen, then you will be reaching for your pitchforks when you hear about the latest recipient of […]
Volt Fire “Insignificant”; No More Likely Than Conventional Car
“There is no direct evidence that the Volt is catching fire under normal operating use” U.S. government investigators are investigating a fire in the lithium-ion battery of a Chevrolet Volt, but investment bank Morgan Stanley said there is nothing for investors to worry about. According to the Bloomberg news agency, U.S. auto-safety regulators are examining […]
Peugeot-Citroen Ratings Cut As Profits Slip Away
Investors Await Cost-Cutting, But Plan Delayed By Election Peugeot-Citroen’s financial ratings were cut by Fitch because its profitability is being undermined by Europe’s crumbling economy. Fitch Ratings said Peugeot-Citroen’s profits were under pressure because weak corporate and consumer confidence, rising unemployment and persistent uncertainty from the government debt crisis were undermining car sales. Fitch cut […]
BMW’s 2012 Prospects Hinge On China’s Millionaires
Profit Forecasts Raised For 2012, 2013 BMW Reaping Big Gains From Modular Programmes But China Sales Start To Level Out While German luxury car manufacturer BMW took a bow following its scintillating third quarter financial performance, some investors were starting to worry about the company’s reliance on China and whether this might start to wobble […]
Despite More Bad News, S&P Still Sees A Strong Industry
But Peugeot, Fiat Said To Be Under Pressure “we are observing better discipline on inventories and on prices. Moreover, balance sheets have strengthened following leverage reductions in automotive operations” Car markets across Europe are weakening, sales projections for next year are being slashed, and a small car price war has started threatening Peugeot and Fiat […]