Auto Sector

Obama urges car industry bail-out as Republicans balk

Obama urges car industry bail-out as Republicans balkWashington  - US president-elect Barack Obama Thursday called on Congress to prevent a collapse of the country's automotive industry, but Senate Republicans were almost certain to block a legislative deal.

The House of Representatives approved a 14-billion-dollar emergency loan for the car industry Wednesday night, a move that would keep General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC out of bankruptcy at least for the coming few months.

Auto Industry Nov. Sales Plunges By 18%: SIAM

Auto Industry Nov. Sales Plunges By 18%: SIAMThe lowest ever sales in history has been experienced by the Indian automobile industry with overall domestic sales shrinking by 17.98% in the month of November 2008 since there was a huge decline in the commercial and passenger vehicle sales.

For the month of November, the total vehicle sales in the domestic market stood at 711,281 units as against 867,243 units in the corresponding month a year ago, claims the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

Auto Makers Cut Vehicles Prices

Auto Makers Cut Vehicles PricesAuto manufactures have started to slash prices of various vehicles following the recent excise duty cut, announced by the union government. Two-wheeler companies such as Hero Honda, Bajaj and Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India has slashed motor cycle prices in the range of Rs 1,000-2,000. Hindustan Motors also slashed price of the Ambassador by Rs 10,000-14,000.

Toyota to cut 2009 sales target by 1 million

Toyota to cut 2009 sales target by 1 millionTokyo  - Japan's largest carmaker, Toyota Motor Corp, pummeled by sharply falling demand, will cut its global sales target for next year by more than 1 million units to less than 8.5 million, news reports said Thursday.

Toyota expects a prolonged drop in demand in 2009 in Europe and the United States, while sales are expected to remain flat in Japan, the Nikkei business daily said.

Sales in the United States dropped by 34 per cent in November.

House approves 14-billion-dollar bail-out for car industry

House approves 14-billion-dollar bail-out for car industryWashington  - The US House of Representatives Wednesday approved a 14-billion-dollar emergency loan to keep the country's car industry out of bankruptcy, sending the bill to a more skeptical Senate.

House lawmakers approved the legislation by 237-170 after weeks of negotiations. The Senate could vote on Friday, but a group of Republican senators have vowed to oppose the loan and appeared to have enough support to block the legislation.

White House, Democrats agree on car bail-out, but haggling remains

Washington  - Democratic legislators and the White House have agreed on the outlines of a deal to keep the US car industry out of bankruptcy, offering a
15-billion-dollar loan in exchange for heavy government oversight.

But the language of the deal was not finalized and it remained unclear if enough Republican legislators had signed on for the agreement to pass Congress.

US politicians have been haggling for weeks on the details of a car industry bail-out. A vote in the House of Representatives was considered possible later Wednesday, but leaders in the upper Senate said they may only vote over the weekend.

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