May 26, 2012

Autos Insider Newsletter

2009: Slow Auto Sales, Higher Prices

The time of heavy rebates is over as carmakers get ready to raise prices to increase profits. Get ready for sticker shock

Paulson: 'Orderly' Auto Bankruptcy May Be Necessary

"This is a time when it makes sense to be prudent" and rescue the automakers, the Treasury Secretary tells BusinessWeek Editor-in-Chief Stephen Adler
Plus: Bernanke's Backdoor Bailouts
Jim Cooper: A Deflation Maelstrom in the Making

Ford Weighs the Costs of Going It Alone

Ford is closely following GM's negotiations with Washington to see if it can afford to do without a bailout
Plus: Chrysler in Month-Long Shutdown

China's First Plug-In Hybrid Car Rolls Out

The infrastructure for running electric cars is not quite in place in China, but BYD Auto's plug-in has a lot to offer

"The shouting and the tumult dies; the captains and the kings depart." At least that's more or less what happened in Washington D.C. this week. After weeks of acrimony and hand-wringing, the White House and the Treasury agreed to bail out GM and Chrysler to the tune of $17.4 billion. (Ford, which is in better financial shape is not taking part in the bailout although it is likely to be getting a line of credit in the New Year.) What that means is that taxpayers now own, in addition to several struggling financial institutions, two flailing automakers. Is that a good thing? We'll have to see. After all, everyone agrees by now that not bailing out Lehman was pretty catastrophic, so not bailing out GM and Chrysler had the potential to be infinitely worse. Both companies have until March to come up with a plan that makes them both "viable" over the long-term. The possibility of a merger between the two has once again been raised. One way they could return to profitability? As columnist Ed Wallace points out, look out for higher sticker prices. Charles DuBow E-MAIL A FRIEND  |  GET RSS  |  NEWSLETTERS

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Reader Tom Brosnahan Writes:

" Leveraging is an acrobatic stunt. Done successfully, it wows the crowd. But if the acrobat reaches too far and misses the bar, he dies. "

Tell Us: How to Avoid Another Madoff Mess? >

Chrysler LLC said Wednesday that it will shut down all its North American production for at least one month starting December 19.

— David Kiley

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