Carlos Ghosn,

Renault and Nissan are installing enough capacity to build 150,000 cars in Japan, 200,000 in Europe and 200,000 in the U.S. They are plunging headlong into the market, claiming to be the first companies to build and sell fully powered electric cars.

Unlike hybrids, such as Toyota's (TM) Prius, electric cars do not have an engine to keep them running when their power runs out.

Continue reading Renault, Nissan CEO Sees Big Demand for Electric Cars by 2011

Renault, Nissan CEO Sees Big Demand for Electric Cars by 2011 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

At this point it is not clear that GM (NYSE: GM) can get the money to merge with Chrysler. The plan would be to cut 50,000 people. That is a lot of severance. Closing plants and combining product lines cannot be done for free.

Chrysler has figured all of this out and has begun to focus on a partnership with Renault and Nissan, both of which are run by former auto whiz kid Carlos Ghosn. He has been trying to buy into the US market for several years without success. Now, he may have his chance.

If Ghosn can set up a deal where he takes a modest equity stake in Chrysler he may expand his reach into American for a small investment. According to The Wall Street Journal, "Chrysler would have a better chance of keeping much of its operations intact in an alliance with Nissan and Renault than in a merger with GM."

The deal would not really make any sense and may simply be a way to push GM into a merger. While putting Chrysler into a marketing and product development pact with both a Japanese and European car manufacturer, the savings would be modest. Since Chrysler's problems are huge cash losses and falling sales in North American it is hard to see how anything short of an outright merger with large cost cuts does the company any good.

But, there is sense of panic in Detroit which leads to grasping of straws. Panic clouds the mind. Chrysler could do a bad deal because it sees the options as better than no deal at all.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Chrysler may turn to Renault originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 21 Oct 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of a series on some of the most memorable companies that have disappeared.

America loves an underdog. And for all its 33 years, American Motors Corporation (AMC) was clearly an underdog.

The American automobile company was formed on January 14, 1954, by the merger of the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and the Hudson Motor Car Company, in an effort to challenge the "Big Three" automakers -- General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), and Chrysler. At the time, it was the largest corporate merger in U.S. history, and the new carmaker became the steward of the popular Hudson Hornet and Nash Rambler lines.

After chairman George Romney retired from AMC in 1962 to run for governor of Michigan, the company struggled to come up with a way to compete with such popular "pony cars" such as the Ford Mustang. Sticking with its strengths in fuel economy, AMC introduced the Gremlin in 1970, its most popular car since the Rambler. The AMC Pacer followed in 1975. The Pacer was wider than Gremlin and featured fishbowl windows designed to eliminate blind spots. Unfortunately, it also had a bigger engine, which ran counter to trends during energy crisis of the mid 1970s. Some blame the Pacer's failure to catch on as the reason for the ultimate demise of the company.

Continue reading Companies that vanished: American Motors Corp. -- always the underdog

Companies that vanished: American Motors Corp. -- always the underdog originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 07 Jun 2008 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) is cutting production at its Volvo unit, according to The Wall Street Journal. The move, which could affect one-third of workers -- some 700 -- is seen as an attempt to cut the costs and losses at the upscale Swedish brand.

The question everyone is asking is whether this move is done in preparation for a sale. According to "people familiar with the matter" who discussed such things with the Journal, CEO Alan Mulally is interested in putting Volvo, whose sales have been declining, on the block. Of course, to analysts, Mulally sang a different tune last month, saying the priority is improve the Swedish auto maker operations "dramatically."

As Kirk Kerkorian's Tracinda Corp. continues to build its stake int he company, he may also have a thing or two to say on the matter.

For now, Volvo is cutting where it makes larger, less popular vehicles, and it plans to make fewer cars overall. But can this make Volvo more profitable for Ford, or at least more attractive to buyers? There are costs associated with producing a smaller number of vehicles, but with Volvo reporting 22,000 fewer vehicles sold during the first quarter, cutting production makes sense. Another matter Ford has to consider is the massive losses it suffered lately just from the kronor-dollar exchange rate.

Continue reading If Ford wants to sell Volvo, who would buy it?

If Ford wants to sell Volvo, who would buy it? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 20 May 2008 14:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading As dollar falls, foreign automakers plan U.S. factories

As dollar falls, foreign automakers plan U.S. factories originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 12 Dec 2007 14:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

By most accounts Russia will be the largest car market in Europe sometime within the next five years. General Motors (NYSE: GM) sells about 250,000 vehicles in the market, but is anxious to get a stronger foothold. Things have not worked out.

Several companies have been competing to get a piece of Russian car maker Avtovaz. Yesterday, Renault announced that it would pick up a 25% interest in the company. According to MarketWatch, the European car company will pay $1.25 billion for its stake.

The announcement is a blow to GM, which has to increase its sales overseas. The U.S. car market is slowing and is expected to drop as much as 7% next year. The No.1 U.S. car company also faces increasing domestic competition from Toyota (NYSE: TM) and Honda (NYSE: HMC), so it faces smaller share in a shrinking market.

GM has had real success in China where its is the leader in car sales along with VW. But local car manufacturers want a larger slice of sales there. GM's vehicle business in Europe is mature. That leaves South America, India, and Russia as the largest potential markets.

In October, GM's share price was up 40% for the year. Due to a fear of falling North American sales, it is now down about 8%. It needed the Russia deal.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

General Motors gets beat in Russia originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 09 Dec 2007 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of our Money Face-Offs feature. Let us know who you think comes out ahead in this head-to-head match-up, and check out our other Money Face-Off posts.

In this corner, hailing from Beverly Hills and Las Vegas, is 91-year old billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian, one-time amateur boxer know as "Rifle Right Kerkorian." And in the other corner, hailing from New York, is 71-year-old corporate raider and activist private equity investor, Carl Icahn, who is never afraid to go toe to toe with an opponent.

Let's get ready to rumble.

Round One begins: Kerkorian drops out of school and becomes a pilot. He gets his start in business buying surplus planes after World War II, as well as Las Vegas properties, becoming the landlord of Caesar's Palace. Icahn, meanwhile, establishes his reputation as a corporate raider during his hostile takeover of TWA in 1985, and becomes one of the inspirations for the character of Gordon "Greed Is Good" Gekko, the antagonist of the 1987 film Wall Street.

Continue reading Money Face-Off: Kirk Kerkorian vs. Carl Icahn

Money Face-Off: Kirk Kerkorian vs. Carl Icahn originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Nissan's (NSANY) Carlos Ghosn recruits a CFO with more of a 'French' touch originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Sep 2007 17:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

More firings for Ford Motor originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 28 Sep 2006 17:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ghosn may look to Ford if GM talks fall through originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 28 Sep 2006 11:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of Nissan and Renault, clearly wants to pressure General Motors (NYSE: GM) and its board to create a global alliance with his companies. Having executives talk to the press about the lack of progress in talks seems to be a primary lever.

In the latest example, a key Renault executive is quoted in several newspapers today saying that talks with GM are progressing, but that GM does not understand that it will be crushed by Toyota Motor (NYSE: TM).

But there may be more pressure on Mr. Ghosn than there is on GM. Renault has done fairly well in the market. Its stock is down slightly from early summer, but has still done well over the last year. Nissan is another matter. Its stock is down from its early summer highs, and Toyota may be a real threat to the company.

In Japan, Nissan's home market, its sales were down 12.8% for the first seven months of 2006. Toyota's sales were flat in Japan for the period.

GM, on the other hand, has been able to take $9 billion in annual costs out of the company, and investors are convinced the large US auto company has at least a fighting chance of being competitive in its home market. The market has voted in that direction, driving GM's shares up from a 52-week low of $18.33 to $30.60 -- fairly close to its annual high.

Ghosn is talking, but it appears that no one at GM is listening.

Douglas McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.

Carlos Ghosn seems eager to push a deal with GM originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 26 Sep 2006 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I came of age in the business climate of the late 80s. You remember, I'm sure, the headlines about Japan buying the entire West Coast. It was like World War II was happening all over again, and this time, we were just handing over our weapons in the guise of the keys to our most precious homegrown businesses.

Now Nissan and Renault are interested in forming an alliance with the venerable U.S. car manufacturer, General Motors, which could include the purchase of up to 20% of GM's shares. What could be worse than the Japanese buying our car companies? Why, the Japanese and the French (but of course).

Perhaps Toyota will become an unlikely knight, says Business Week -- perhaps even offering to purchase GM. One executive near the transaction says that Toyota "has no interest" in any form of alliance between GM and its rivals. Already GM and Toyota work together in California, where Toyota's Corolla, Matrix and Tacoma are assembled alongside GM's Pontiac Vibe.

We're not afraid of the Japanese any more, it seems. Chairman and CEO Richard Wagoner Jr. might even benefit from a takeover by Toyota -- according to some who are familiar with the Renault-Nissan deal, the plans could include replacing Wagoner with Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Nissan and Renault. Other sources, of course, say that Toyota would be unlikely to do anything so aggressive as a takeover bid. Either way, due to a 90-day timeframe set out in the Renault-Nissan-GM alliance announcement, Toyota will have to make a decision quickly or watch as its biggest competitor squeezes it out of the partnership race.

Could Toyota buy GM? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 17 Jul 2006 18:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.