Tag Archives: General Motors

Morgan Stanley: Tesla Not as Green as You Think

Saturday, 19 August 2017 06:15

This article appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Friday, August 18, 2017:

English: Tesla Roadster Sport 2.5, the fourth-...

Tesla Roadster Sport 2.5, the fourth-generation Roadster from electric carmaker Tesla Motors Inc.

Morgan Stanley, the international banking behemoth, released the results of its study on the best “green” companies in which to invest. This is based, said the bank, on the assumptions that some, perhaps many, investors who have drunk the “green Kool-Aid” want to invest in ways to “save” the environment and fight against “climate change.” Missing from the top of their list is perhaps the most visible “green” automobile company: Tesla, Inc., formerly known as Tesla Motors.

After comparing the savings in carbon dioxide (CO2) achieved by Tesla’s high-mileage electric vehicles to all the “secondary and tertiary” factors involved in their manufacture, Morgan Stanley said,

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Ford CEO Suddenly Retires: Early Casualty of AV Revolution

Tuesday, 23 May 2017 05:47

This article appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Monday, May 22, 2017:

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During a conference call that followed the official announcement on Monday that Ford’s CEO Mark Fields was going to retire — his position to be taken by the head of Ford’s autonomous vehicle division — the company’s executive chairman, Bill Ford, said, “This is a time of unprecedented change. And time of great change, in my mind, requires a transformational leader. And thankfully we have that in Jim.”

That would be James “Jim” Hackett, who

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Uber Facing “Existential Threat” From AVs?

Tuesday, 09 May 2017 05:55

This article appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Monday, May 8, 2017:

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When ride-sharing company Uber bought Otto, the company developing autonomous car driving software, last August, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick said the purchase was “existential” to the company: “The world is going to go self-driving and autonomous … a million fewer people are going to die a year [worldwide]. Traffic in all cities will be gone. [There will be] significantly reduced pollution and trillions of hours will be given back to people — quality of life goes way up. Once you go, “All right, there’s a lot of upsides there” … If we weren’t part of the autonomy thing? Then the future passes us by.”

No less an authority than the Wall Street Journal agrees.

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An Inside Look at Venezuela’s Collapse

Saturday, 22 April 2017 05:48

This article was published by The McAlvany Intelligence Advisor on Friday, April 21, 2017:

Português: Brasília - O chanceler da Venezuela...

Marxist Nicolas Maduro

Andres Malave grew up in Caracas until Chavez took over. Then he and his family were able to escape – barely – to the US. Wrote Malave, “It was a hard choice, but in hindsight, we were the lucky ones.”

Now he laments the blind eye many Americans turn towards the rioting, the deaths, the crime, the economic devastation, and the ravages of inflation that Venezuela is suffering:

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GM Ceases Operations in Venezuela Following Government Seizure of its Plant

Friday, 21 April 2017 05:51

This article appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Thursday, April 20, 2017:

Following the government’s confiscation of its parts plant, General Motors announced on Wednesday it was ceasing all operations in Venezuela. The company said the seizure was illegal and that it would seek legal remedies.

The announcement puts 2,700 workers making replacement parts in the plant out of work, with small comfort coming from GM, which said it would make “separation payments” to those employees.

But what then? Another 3,900 people will likely find their jobs in jeopardy as the 79 car dealers that employ them will also shortly disappear in the aftermath of GM’s decision.

GM joins an ever-growing list of companies that can’t operate in the socialist paradise run by Marxist dictator Nicolás Maduro, including

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Samsung to Expand in United States, Bringing Back 500 Jobs From Mexico

Thursday, 09 March 2017 06:40

This article appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Wednesday, March 8, 2017:

The South Korean behemoth maker of consumer electronics, semi-conductors, ships, and telecommunications equipment was reported by the Wall Street Journal (quoting unnamed inside sources) to be investing $300 million in facilities in South Carolina and simultaneously bringing 500 jobs back from Mexico to work there.

It’s a tentative decision, according to Samsung in a statement it made to the Journal, with the company noting that “this is a complex process that, like all strategic business decisions, will not be made final until it is determined through proper due diligence and planning that it is the best option for Samsung.”

In ordinary times such a modest investment, made under such indeterminate conditions with such disclaimers, would hardly rate a few column inches at the back of the business section. But these are hardly ordinary times,

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New Job Announcements Before Inauguration More Political than Economic

Thursday, 19 January 2017 06:36

This article was published by The McAlvany Intelligence Advisor on Wednesday, January 18, 2017:

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President-elect Donald Trump has mercilessly hammered American companies with overseas operations, and the message is coming through loud and clear: bring them back, keep them here, or pay dearly once he is in office.

Ford changed its plans, cancelling a project in Mexico and expanding a facility here. Fiat did the same as did Toyota. Sprint’s plans to add new jobs coupled with Lockheed Martin’s willingness to work with Mr. Trump even before he is president all reflect the new reality: Trump plans to keep his campaign promises and create jobs here.

What makes the recent announcements by General Motors and Walmart suspicious is that they not only are timed to appear just before the inauguration, but they also

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GM, Walmart, Amazon Announce New Jobs Ahead of Trump’s Inauguration

Wednesday, 18 January 2017 06:46

This article appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Tuesday, January 17, 2017:

First it was Amazon, announcing last week that it will be creating 100,000 new full-time jobs in the United States over the next 18 months. Said Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s CEO, “These jobs are not just in our Seattle headquarters or in Silicon Valley, they’re in our customer service network, fulfillment centers and other facilities through the country.” When in place Amazon will be employing nearly 300,000 people in the United States.

President-elect Donald Trump was pleased to take some credit,

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Fiat Chrysler Announces $1 Billion Investment in U.S., Creating 2,000 Jobs

Thursday, 12 January 2017 06:44

This article appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Wednesday, January 11, 2017:

Italiano: Sergio Marchionne

Sergio Marchionne

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), the American arm of Fiat-Chrysler, announced on Sunday that it was investing $1 billion in expanding its plants in Warren, Michigan, and Toledo, Ohio — a move which would result in 2,000 new jobs by 2020: “Consistent and combined with previously announced investments, FCA US is further demonstrating its commitment to strengthening its U.S. manufacturing base, and aligning U.S. capacity to extend the Jeep product lineup.”

Some have speculated that

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Multi-nationals Are Leaving Venezuela, Selling Out at Fire Sale Prices

Thursday, 17 November 2016 06:52

This article appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Wednesday, November 16, 2016:

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Over the last year, General Motors, Ford Motor Company, auto parts maker Dana, Clorox, Kimberly-Clark, Bridgestone Tire, and Liberty Mutual have either sold out their Venezuelan interests at huge losses, have given their factories and properties away for free, or are planning to. Those who used to work for them are now working in another profession: as bachaqueros. This is slang for “giant ants,” used as a pejorative to describe street vendors offering their wares in the black market.

General Mills sold its operations at half the assessed value, while Dana was lucky

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Driverless Cars to Disrupt Industry, Benefit Consumers

Friday, 22 May 2015 05:54

This article first appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Thursday, May 21, 2015:

English: Google driverless car operating on a ...

Google driverless car operating on a testing path

Brian Johnson, in his “Disruptive Mobility” report issued by Barclays Bank on Tuesday, sees that a future with driverless cars will mean far fewer cars on the road, a much smaller GM and Ford, and consumer travel costs cut by two-thirds. A generation from now there will be just 100 million cars on American roads (compared to 250 million today), and new car sales will fall below levels touched at the bottom of the Great Recession: less than 10 million a year.

This means that, unless they adapt and adopt new strategies, and perhaps a new business model, General Motors and Ford will likely be vastly smaller enterprises than they are today. He predicts that

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Auto Loan Bubble a Replay of Housing Mortgage Bubble?

Tuesday, 13 January 2015 02:34

This article first appeared online at TheNewAmerican.com on Monday, January 12, 2015:

View image | gettyimages.com

When Patrina Thomas decided it was time to trade in her 2002 Jeep in the summer of 2013, she went back to her local friendly Chrysler dealer. They were only too happy to take her Jeep as a down payment on a used 2008 Chrysler Sebring with the balance, an estimated $10,000, financed at 20.4 percent interest. Because her credit score was below 620, she qualified for “special” financing provided by Santander Consumer USA Holdings, a lender working closely with Chrysler Capital in such cases.

Her payment was so high — $385 a month — that she struggled to make it from the very first month. It finally got beyond her ability to pay, and the car was repossessed a year later. With a market value today of just $4,600 and her remaining loan balance of $7,600, she is upside down by $3,000.

Thomas has lots of company. According to the Wall Street Journal:

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GM Bailout Cost Taxpayers far more than just $11 Billion

Friday, 02 May 2014 07:34

General Motors HydroGen4

General Motors HydroGen4 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Detroit Free Press’ announcement on Wednesday that taxpayers lost more on the General Motors bailout in 2009 than originally thought was brief, to the point, and missed most of the real story behind the GM bailout. Taxpayers lost $11.2 billion following the government’s sale of the last of the stock it held in GM following the company’s government-assisted bankruptcy and restructuring, according to the announcement.

The key quote from a Treasury spokesman, however, was revealing. Said Adam Hodge:

The goal of Treasury’s investment in GM was never to make a profit, but to help save the American auto industry, and by any measure that effort was successful.

Not if one was a bondholder in GM. Not if one believed that

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Is the Dingell Dynasty in the House Over?

Saturday, 08 March 2014 08:42

This article first appeared at The McAlvany Intelligence Advisor on Friday, March 7, 2014:

The encomiums poured in following the announcement by John Dingell (D-Mich.) last week that he wouldn’t be seeking a 30^th term in the House. Tweeted Gary Peters (D-Mich.): “Today we honor the service and legacy of Michigan’s greatest Congressman. His accomplishments will never be forgotten.” Such praise would reasonably be expected from a hard-left progressive like Peters who

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Age and Acrimony End Dingell Dynasty in the House

Thursday, 06 March 2014 11:54

Born in Colorado Springs in 1926, John Dingell (D-Mich.) took over from his father as a Representative from Michigan in 1955 and has never stopped promoting his father’s progressive agenda. On Monday, February 24^th, Dingell announced that he would not seek a 30^th term partly due to

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Monumental Hubris in Claim of Taxpayer Victory in GM Bailout

Thursday, 12 December 2013 05:52

This article first appeared at The McAlvany Intelligence Advisor on Wednesday, December 11th, 2013:

In Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew’s fawning, obsequious, genuflecting announcement that the president had singlehandedly saved western civilization from a cataclysmic economic disaster, he said that by taking a loss, taxpayers actually scored a victory:

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US Treasury sells the rest of its GM shares at a loss, claims taxpayer victory

Wednesday, 11 December 2013 05:40

Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew announced on Monday afternoon that his department had sold the remaining shares of GM that it acquired following the forced bankruptcy of the auto giant in 2009, and made the $10.5 billion loss sound like it was a victory:

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Former Treasury Secretary Geithner to head up private equity firm Warburg Pincus

Tuesday, 19 November 2013 06:40

Former Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announced his plans to join the Wall Street private equity firm Warburg Pincus in March 2014 where he will serve as president and managing director.

Geithner is the proto-typical insider with establishment ties that follow almost exactly

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Detroit: the First Domino to Fall

Monday, 22 July 2013 15:14

This article was first published at The McAlvany Intelligence Advisor on Monday, July 22nd, 2013:

The city of Detroit is living proof that Herb Stein is right: if something cannot go on forever, it will stop. For Detroit, it stopped last week when

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Cheap Abundant Natural Gas is a Game Changer, Says the IMF

Friday, 22 March 2013 15:00

Expressing surprise at the enormous increase in US production of oil and natural gas by unconventional means, Thomas Helbling, a division chief in the IMF’s (International Monetary Fund) Research Department, was forced to admit that it was free enterprise that was responsible for it after all. In his March 2013 article he wrote:

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