Marcie Belles's Blog – January 2009 Archive (8)

Ford Credit to Slash 20% of Workforce

Sluggish vehicle sales at Ford Motor Co. are taking their toll on captive Ford Credit.

The automaker, slated to release fourth-quarter and yearend earnings Thursday, plans to eliminate 1,200 jobs by the end of July.

“This will help us keep our costs in line with our receivables and the lower industry sales overall,” said Ford Motor Credit spokeswoman Margaret Mellott.

Over the past few years, Ford Credit has trimmed staffing levels. The company employed 11,100… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on January 28, 2009 at 11:30pm — No Comments

Tackling the Consumer Confidence Problem

Consumer confidence plunged to an all-time low this month, according to Conference Board data released today. The January reading came in at 37.7, down from 38.6 in December.

To put things in perspective, the Consumer Confidence Index was 110.3 in January 2007 and 87.9 in January 2008.

For months, consumer confidence — or the lack thereof — has been blamed for low vehicle sales figures. Consumers are just too wary about their jobs, home values, and retirement funds to even… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on January 27, 2009 at 2:30pm — No Comments

NADA 2009: A Sign of the Times

NEW ORLEANS — The weather in New Orleans was chilly and overcast, with a thick haze hanging in the air all day. In other words, it mirrored the sentiment in the auto industry.

Judging by the attendance at this year’s National Automobile Dealers Association conference, the forecast for 2009 is pretty dreary. Estimates from expo participants ranged from a 40% to a 70% decline in attendance Conference-goers referred to volume as “light” or “quiet,” but one exhibitor heading out early… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on January 25, 2009 at 8:03pm — No Comments

Chrysler, Fiat Forge Alliance

Cerberus Capital Management unveiled a major component of its restructuring plan today: an alliance with Italian automaker Fiat SpA.

As part of the deal, Fiat will take a 35% equity interest in Chrysler. The agreement calls for the two companies to leverage each other’s distribution networks and suppliers, among other things, to create “substantial” cost savings.

For more details about the agreement,… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on January 20, 2009 at 12:08pm — 4 Comments

Chrysler Financial Snares TARP Funding

Just weeks after granting GMAC LLC bank-holding-company status and providing it with $6 billion in TARP funds, the Treasury Department today approved $1.5 billion of funds for Chrysler Financial LLC. The capital infusion will be used to finance consumer auto loans, in a move meant to help restore the faltering auto industry.

Click here to read Treasury's announcement of the funding and its terms.

Added by Marcie Belles on January 16, 2009 at 3:00pm — No Comments

Victims of Circumstance

Over the years, we’ve watched the manual underwriting process evolve into an automated one, with loan decisions generated in split seconds. The current market turmoil might upend that methodology, though, as artificially low credit scores keep potential car buyers out of the market.

In a nutshell, here’s the premise: Increasingly, there are consumers who used to be model borrowers, repaying their loans on time, month after month. They lose their jobs — and their ability to make those… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on January 14, 2009 at 12:04pm — 15 Comments

EXCLUSIVE: GMAC Shuts Down Nuvell, National

As GMAC keeps to its prime-lending knitting, the latest casualties of its cost-cutting measures are Nuvell and National Auto Finance, which shut down today, AutoFinanceNews.net has learned.

Nuvell handled GMAC’s nonprime and private-label business; National financed non-GM vehicles for prime and nonprime customers.

In all, 212 employees lost their jobs. Another 136 took positions at GMAC, including those who handle Nuvell’s private-label business for Suzuki, spokesman Mike… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on January 7, 2009 at 12:30pm — 6 Comments

The Glass Is Half Full

Vehicle sales reports for December are starting to trickle in, and the results are generally in line with expectations. The majority of manufacturers will record double-digit declines for the month — and year.

Already, Ford announced a 32% decline for December and 21% for the full year.

Sure, the news will get worse before it gets better, but there is a silver lining in all this. You see, throughout 2008, industry executives revised and re-revised their sales targets… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on January 5, 2009 at 1:28pm — No Comments