It appears that the Obama administration thinks the Big 3 ought to become the Big 2. In papers released in Washington late Sunday, the administrtion questioned whether Chrysler can survive on its own. While it acknowledges that Chrysler has made some progress under new management, the administration seriously questions many of the economic assumptions and forecasts that the auto-maker has submitted to the government.
Archive for March 29th, 2009
Posted by Rick Stine
on March 29, 2009
Auto Industry, Credit Crisis, Economy, Washington / Comments Off
Auto Industry, Credit Crisis, Economy, Washington / Comments Off
Posted by Gabriella Stern
on March 29, 2009
Auto Industry, Credit Crisis, Economy, Washington / 1 Comment
Auto Industry, Credit Crisis, Economy, Washington / 1 Comment
It’s a shame it took the Obama administration to oust Rick Wagoner. GM’s board should have done it months, if not years ago. This was a corporate boss who never saw a tough decision he didn’t want to run from, or a critic he didn’t want to slap around. Whether killing superfluous car brands or taking the fight to the UAW – both of which could and should have been done long before the current crisis in the industry – Wagoner failed to step up to the awesome responsibility he had to preserve and protect America’s greatest auto maker.
The notion that blue-eyed white men brought down the global economy is laughable, of course. (I refer to the recent comments of Brazilian political boss Lula). But my third trip to India – got back a few days ago – underscores that the world’s developing economies had best clean up their own acts before pointing fingers elsewhere. Rampant hygiene and sanitation problems – aka rural and urban areas living in squalor – are most certainly not the creation of the white boys’ club that ran global finance for too long.
On our way to Singapore on business, we had a brief layover in Hong Kong. So brief, that we never left the airport compound. This morning, after clearing immigration and going through the security checks, we walked to the gate but decided to get a bite to eat and perhaps a coffee. The Hong Kong airport has a full range of stores – high end clothing and gifts to appliances to Duty Free booze to that last minute souvenir you might grab for one of the kids. It also has a variety of restaurants – a sports bar here, a bakery place there, noodle shops along with other fast-food Chinese cuisine. The two places that had the longest lines at 8 a.m.?
