Auto industry taking a beating
I would like to express how happy I am to read this. I know that there are people who lost jobs over this, unfortunately, but these vehicles just had to go, sooner or later. Its about time GM takes a massive beating for killing the electric car in the 1990s. They deserved this and worse (diiiiiiiiiiiiiie, GM, diiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeee):
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/serv...ilTPStory/Focus
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TALKING PICTURES: IMAGES OF THE WORLD THIS WEEK: STALLED MARKET IN HEAVY METAL
July 5, 2008
If there's one thing the auto industry hates, it's deals and discounts - they put a major dent into profits, ride roughshod over brand image, rust out resale values and steer consumers away from snapping up new models as soon as they arrive in favour of waiting for deals and discounts.
But the new reality of the North American auto industry is neatly captured in this scene at a Chrysler dealership in Portland, Ore [image not provided, only for subscribers].
U.S. auto sales hit their lowest point in more than a decade last month, while in Canada, sales of cars and light trucks in June fell 5.7 per cent from the same month last year and were down 13.6 per cent from the previous month. Worst hit has been General Motors, Canada's largest automaker, whose sales plummeted 23.8 per cent from a year ago.
And the fallout has slammed Canadian workers hard - with announcements last month that GM would be closing the truck-assembly plant in Oshawa, Ont., which employs 2,600; that Magna International Inc., Canada's largest auto-parts manufacturer, would be cutting 400 jobs at its plant in St. Thomas, Ont.; and, just this week, that 11 smaller plants that make plastic instrument panels in the Toronto area would close, eliminating another 2,000 jobs.
The reason is hardly a mystery - oil prices hit a record high of $146.69 (U.S.) a barrel on Thursday, which, on top of environmental concerns, is driving consumers toward smaller, more fuel-efficient cars. And those are where the foreign competition tends to excel.
GM, Ford and Chrysler have all announced plans to move toward production of smaller vehicles.
But in the meantime, it's going to take a lot more deals and discounts to get rid of the once-mighty gas-guzzlers.
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