It is hard to imagine an industry where when sales are off 30% to 40% it is considered a good thing. Welcome, to the Detroit auto company bailout of 2009. Sales of light vehicles…
Detroit has gone to the government well and collected enough money to get it through to late March. It will present forecasts to the government based on cutting costs, keeping market share, and operating…
The mathematics of the US car company bailout are simple. At least the car companies say that they are. Expenses get cut. Labor costs go down to what they are for Japanese auto firms…
Thanks for this. Reuters reports that "The auto sector is expected to be the most financially troubled industry in the United States next year, taking the top spot from the homebuilding group, according to…
"Baby, you can drive my car /yes, I’m gonna be a star/ Baby you can drive my car /And maybe I’ll love you."–The Beatles. The matchless idiocy which has defined the fall of the…
Kirk Kerkorian used to be considered "smart money". He wears a dunce hat now that Ford (F) is back near $2. According to Reuters his investment firm, Tracinda Corp., has sold all of its…
The executives in the automobile industry will go to any lengths to prove what boobs they are. GM management has elected to wait until next year before it begins to negotiate cuts with its…
The easy answer to the question of what US operations of The Big Three are worth is that they are worth nothing. That assessment is entirely accurate based on the current encumbrances of union…
On Friday, it become very apparent to us that the common equity in General Motors (NYSE: GM) will become worthless. We advised shareholders of GM that they have 60 days to sell at whatever…
Canada will put up $3.3 billion in government loans for troubled car companies. GM (GM) and Chrysler have large operations there, particularly plants. A shutdown of the firms would cost thousands of jobs. The…
Michael Jackson, the CEO of Auto Nation (AN) has been around the car industry for decades. He got started as an auto dealer in 1979 and ran the North American operations of Mercedes-Benz. Jackson…
It has become just another trading day for GM (GM). Shares are up 11% to $4.09. Over the last two weeks, it has traded well above that level on several days. On December 8,…
President Bush said that he will offer loans from the TARP to cover funding needs for three months or so. The package is meant to mirror the one narrowly defeated in Congress less than…
The Bush White House let it leak out yesterday that it was looking at Chapter 11 as a possible way to deal with GM (GM). The news is an acknowledgment that suppliers, creditors, and…
Credit rating agencies and stock analysts have the habit of stating the obvious after the obvious is obvious to everyone else. S&P cut its price target on GM (GM) today. A bit later, the…