Category Archives: results

Japan Earthquake Causes Loss of 320,000 Vehicles. More Plant Shutdowns on Way and the Worst is yet to Come

Posted on 25 March 2011 by Ken Zino

“The Japan disaster has had a profound effect on the automotive industry,” said IHS Automotive Director Michael Robinet, noting that 13% of the global automotive industry is shut down and companies have lost 320,000 units of production since the earthquake, tsunami and power disruptions. Continue reading →

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Super Bowl Ads Effective for Chevrolet, Mini, Kia, and VW

Posted on 24 March 2011 by Ken Zino

Chevrolet, Mini, Kia and Volkswagen had the best return on investment among the ten automakers advertising during the 2011 Super Bowl, according to data just released by publisher Hachette Filipacchi.

A six week study conducted before and after the Super Bowl was based on traffic on 14 automotive websites. Continue reading →

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March New Vehicle Retail Sales Running at 10.9 Million SAAR

Posted on 24 March 2011 by Ken Zino

March new-vehicle sales are showing stability through the first three weeks of the month, continuing a trend of monthly double-digit year-over-year increases, according to the latest data.

New vehicle retail sales are projected to come in at 991,900 units, which represent a seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) of 10.9 million units, according to J.D. Power and Associates, which gathers transaction data from more than 8,900 franchise dealers throughout the United States. Continue reading →

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General Motors Sells All of Its Ally Preferred for $1 Billion

Posted on 23 March 2011 by Ken Zino

General Motors Company (NYSE: GM) has sold of its preferred shares of Ally Financial Inc. for a total of $1.0 billion. Ally, formerly known as GMAC, is GM’s and Chryslers largest provider of automotive financing. Continue reading →

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Vehicle Dependability at Record, but Electronic Problems Grow

Posted on 17 March 2011 by Ken Zino

Overall vehicle dependability has slightly improved from 2010, but automakers are having difficulty overcoming problems with newer technologies and features, according to the J.D. Power and Associates. The study measures problems experienced during the past 12 months by original owners … Continue reading →

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BMW Says Record Sales and Earnings Coming in 2011

Posted on 15 March 2011 by Ken Zino

The BMW Group during 2011 will improve on record earnings set in 2010 and increase them again in 2012 claimed Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG on Tuesday in Munich.

It was the latest sign that the auto industry is coming back, especially in high margin luxury vehicle segments. The BMW prediction follows records the world’s larger luxury make set in 2010. Continue reading →

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Another GM Top Management Change as CFO Liddell Resigns

Posted on 10 March 2011 by Ken Zino

It appears that the outside financial gunslingers brought in by Treasury – notably Ed Whitaker retired from ATT and Chris Liddell from Microsoft had short term personal goals as to how long they would run the historic and now recovering auto giant. This begs the question as to how long the current CEO Dan Akerson, who came from Wall Street, will stick around, and puts a stop to speculation that Liddell, 52, was the obvious heir apparent for Akerson’s job. Continue reading →

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BMW on Record 2010 Earnings Proposes Record Dividends

Posted on 10 March 2011 by Ken Zino

As a result of the strong comeback the BMW Board of Management and the Supervisory Board will propose that the dividend be increased to €1.30 (2009: 0.30) per share of common stock and €1.32 (2009 € 0.32) per share of preferred stock at the annual meeting in May.

Both proposed dividends are record highs. The odds that shareholders will vote down such increases are close to nil. Continue reading →

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U.S. Treasury to Sell $2.7 Billion of Ally Preferred Securities

Posted on 4 March 2011 by Ken Zino

As part of this corporate welfare program, Treasury invested a total of $17.2 billion in a failing Ally. This was the result of what critics called reckless lending practices in the home mortgage markets, which caused huge Ally losses when the housing bubble burst in 2009. Continue reading →

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Used Vehicle Sales Up 12% in February

Posted on 2 March 2011 by Ken Zino

It’s not only the new vehicle market that’s showing signs of revival in February – used vehicle sales are up as well, with more than 1.8 million units changing owners. This healthy sales trend comes during February, traditionally the slowest … Continue reading →

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China Rules as GM Sets February Sales Record

Posted on 2 March 2011 by Ken Zino

General Motors and its eleven government-mandated Chinese joint ventures sold 184,498 vehicles in February, setting a new record for the month, but not, repeat not, outperforming its amazing sales of 207,000 in its home U.S. market. Continue reading →

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General Motors Posts 2010 Net of $4.7B on $135.6B of Income

Posted on 24 February 2011 by Ken Zino

General Motors Company (NYSE: GM) today announced its calendar year 2010 results of $4.7 billion of net income per share of common stock for its first full year of operations after it emerged from bankruptcy as a U.S. and Canadian taxpayer owned automaker. Continue reading →

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Rolls-Royce to Debut Electric Phantom Concept at Geneva

Posted on 21 February 2011 by Ken Zino

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars today confirmed the existence of the Phantom Experimental Electric, an electric Phantom concept car that will debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Continue reading →

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New Toyota Ads Debut on Monday Touting “Why It’s the Best-Selling Brand in America.” Sales Slowly Coming Back?

Posted on 18 February 2011 by Ken Zino

“#1 for a Reason.” includes rebates and 0% financing for 60 months across most of Toyota’s core vehicles. Continue reading →

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U.S. Vehicle Sales Forecast to be Up in February from January

Posted on 17 February 2011 by Ken Zino

If sales continue to grow, what are now isolated shortages of some vehicles will become greater, and prices will rise. Suppliers, who drastically trimmed output during the past three years, are showing signs of not being able to keep up. Continue reading →

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