Economy

SALES

Weak March dashes recovery hopes for European carmakers

April 3, 2013 08:37 CET
European car sales shrank again in March, threatening more losses for carmakers in the region after a dismal 2012, according to figures and forecasts. With euro-zone unemployment at a record high, forecaster LMC Automotive sees this year's sales dropping 3.1 percent in western Europe to 11.4 million vehicles.... Read More »

 

EURO ZONE CRISIS

Chill in car sales spreads to northern Europe

March 27, 2013 11:15 CET
Dealers in northern Europe are feeling the chill after a slump in new-car sales spread to countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden. The outlook is grim for some markets that had until now escaped the worst of the euro zone debt crisis.... Read More »

 

RETAIL SALES/NEW PRODUCT

Skoda sees new models helping to offset Europe slump

March 20, 2013 14:34 CET
Skoda is confident that deliveries this year will rise as the introduction of new or updated models, including a new large SUV, the Octavia compact and the Rapid Spaceback compact hatchback, offsets a drop in European demand.... Read More »

 

EUROPEAN SALES

Ford, GM and Fiat worst hit by 10% drop in European car sales in February

March 19, 2013 10:34 CET
Ford, General Motors and Fiat were the automakers worst hit as European passenger car registrations fell 10 percent last month to their lowest February level for 23 years. The region's deepening recession continued to deter customers from buying cars despite steep discounting.... Read More »

 

Ford, GM and Fiat hit hard as European auto sales fall 10% in Feb.

4:34 am U.S. ET | March 19, 2013
Ford, GM and Fiat were the automakers worst hit as European passenger car registrations fell 10 percent in February. The region's deepening recession continued to deter customers from buying cars despite steep discounting.... Read More »

 

Ghosn favors incentives to revive Europe car demand

March 18, 2013 06:01 CET
Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn supports scrapping incentives to mitigate falling demand for new cars in Europe, which is headed toward a sixth straight year of decline as austerity measures keep customers out of showrooms.... Read More »

 

Bosch auto boss sees slight growth in car parts sales in 2013

March 11, 2013 15:46 CET
Robert Bosch expects revenue from the sale of car parts to grow slightly this year as it grabs a bigger share of components built in each car. "We're growing above all through higher turnover per car, less through higher production levels," said Bernd Bohr, responsible for Bosch's core car parts division.... Read More »

 

Continental forecasts first-quarter sales drop on falling auto demand

March 8, 2013 06:01 CET
Continental forecasts first-quarter sales will decline as much as 3 percent as demand for autos in its home market plunges. Revenue in the quarter will drop 1 percent to 3 percent, the company says.... Read More »

 

Automaker chiefs urge end to European austerity

March 6, 2013 09:49 CET
Automakers joined growing opposition to Europe's austerity measures. Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn urged government spending to revive the region's anemic sales, which he forecast won't recover for another three years.... Read More »

 

GABE NELSON

Why the auto industry isn't scared of the 'sequestration' crisis

5:17 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 28, 2013
If you have watched even a few minutes of television news in the past few days, you are probably well aware the United States is less than a day away from another fiscal crisis. So why isn't the auto industry panicking?... Read More »

 

Volkswagen's start to year is worse than in 2012, Poetsch says

Feb. 25, 2013 09:49 CET
Volkswagen CFO Hans Dieter Poetsch predicted the first quarter would be worse than a year earlier, adding to a forecast last week that VW's 2013 operating profit probably wouldn't increase as Europe's auto market shrinks.... Read More »

 

Carmakers pin hopes on Europe's UK bright spot

Feb. 19, 2013 14:18 CET
The UK was the only major European car market to grow sales last year, but to maintain the growth, automakers may have to keep offering such large incentives that they may erode any remaining profit.... Read More »

 

PSA, Renault realities force French gov't rethink

Feb. 9, 2013 06:15 CET
With France on the brink of recession and PSA and Renault seeking to shed thousands of jobs, the country's government may be forced to follow Germany's path that helped Volkswagen to restructure.... Read More »

 

Renault's European fix in danger as Russian growth slows

Feb. 7, 2013 06:19 CET
Russia's car market is forecast to slow and possibly decline this year, ending a three-year streak of gains of more than 10 percent and damping market leader Renault's efforts to offset slumping demand in Europe.... Read More »

 

Euro zone car markets likely to stabilize by mid-year, VDA says

Feb. 5, 2013 06:01 CET
The German automakers association, the VDA, expects euro zone car markets to stabilize in the middle of the year.... Read More »

 

PSA unions bicker over job cuts at crisis-hit automaker

Feb. 1, 2013 06:01 CET
PSA/Peugeot-Citroen labor leaders squared off against one another over a plan to eliminate 17 percent of the automaker's French work force, with three of the five main unions urging immediate action to stem losses.... Read More »

 

PSA unions bicker over job cuts at crisis-hit automaker

Jan. 31, 2013 17:49 CET
PSA/Peugeot-Citroen labor leaders squared off against one another over a plan to eliminate 17 percent of the automaker's French workforce, with three of the five main unions urging immediate action to stem losses.... Read More »

 

Goodyear will close French plant on Europe troubles

Jan. 31, 2013 11:49 CET
Goodyear will close its main French plant and cut its work force in the country by 39 percent amid labor disputes and plunging auto demand in Europe.... Read More »

 

Ghosn sees long European slump unless region gets competitive

Jan. 30, 2013 12:45 CET
Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn said the European auto market won't recover before 2020 unless governments take action to make their economies competitive.... Read More »

 

VW plans further cuts in German Passat production

Jan. 30, 2013 21:01 CET
VW plans further temporary halts in production of the Passat in Germany in the coming weeks as a result of the weak European market.... Read More »

 

Ghosn says Renault must act to lift French competitiveness

Jan. 24, 2013 11:19 CET
Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn said the automaker must take action to increase productivity. 'The best thing we can hope for is a market stabilization' in Europe, he said.... Read More »

 

BRUCE GAIN

Europe's crisis forces Renault to get tough

12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 24, 2013
Faced with steep sales declines, Renault may dare the previously unthinkable: Closing unproductive car plants in France.... Read More »

 

Bosch auto unit misses sales target by 600 million euros

Jan. 23, 2013 12:00 CET
Robert Bosch's auto division boosted global sales by 1.7 percent to a record 30.9 billion euros last year, but missed its 2012 sales target by 600 million euros. The auto unit -- and Bosch as a whole -- will hold back on investments this year because of Europe's weak market, company executives said.... Read More »

 

Renault's French job-cutting plan gets better reception than PSA's

Jan. 17, 2013 06:01 CET
Renault's plan to cut 7,500 jobs in France to boost the competitiveness of its plants has had a better reception from the government than a similar move by rival PSA.... Read More »

 

2012 European car sales lowest since 1995

Jan. 16, 2013 08:34 CET
New-car registrations in Europe plunged by 16 percent in December as volume automakers suffered falling sales. Full-year sales declined 7.8 percent to 12.5 million cars, the lowest level since 1995.... Read More »

 

Special Report
Dealer O.C. Welch's big-truck turnaround

Dealer O.C. Welch's big-truck turnaround

After Mercury's demise, South Carolina Ford-Lincoln dealer O.C. Welch had to find a way to replace lost revenue. He decided to load up on Super Duty pickups – and sell them online. Mon., June 17
» Watch the Video
     
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    Don Davis Dealerships, Inc. -- Lake Jackson, Texas, United States
     
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    Performance Toyota -- Memphis, Tennessee, United States
     
 
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