Ford Cuts Production as U.S. Sales Slip

[hang a left]

Ford Cuts Production as U.S. Sales Slip


DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co. (F.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , which reported another month of disappointing U.S. sales on Wednesday, said it was setting its fourth-quarter North American production below last year's levels in a move that could hurt its earnings.
The second-largest U.S. automaker, which has been losing market share to Asian and domestic rivals, said its U.S. sales fell 13 percent in August.

To help cut inventories of unsold cars and trucks, Ford said it would produce 830,000 vehicles in the fourth quarter compared with 900,000 in the same quarter a year ago. Production cuts can hurt earnings because Ford and other automakers count profits from vehicles when they are shipped to dealers, not when they are sold to consumers.

Ford's sales results include its import brands and some medium- and heavy-duty trucks and are not adjusted for the number of selling days.

end

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=6126232

[David Dunham]

1. I love the Bush economy.

[bleedingheart]

2. Wow what a shock gas guzzlers aren't selling that well...

who would have known????

[The_Casual_Observer]

3. The economy is running on all cylinders!

It is "bipping" along. Is john snow going to be giving a speech at the convention???

[ezekiel333]

4. Ford Rolls Over "Turning the Corner" on Bush Economy. eom

[Leilani]

5. Why are you posting this bad news?

Are you a girlie-man?

[hang a left]

6. I am a girlie-girl

:evilgrin:

[Leilani]

8. That s a relief!

What would Arnie think if we were all wimping out!

[yellowcanine]

11. Will the jobs report on Friday be prepared by girlie men - or Arnold

terminator types? Inquiring minds want to know.

[soothsayer]

7. Slow sales are a sure sign of a booming economy

in the bizarro bush world

Ford hates girly men for their freedom

[POed_Ex_Repub]

9. This is what amazes me...

The economy sucks, the Iraq war is a disaster, * hasn't had one single successful policy, and yet polling is close? I understand he has a hard-core voter base but still it ought to be 65-35% Kerry. I guess saying the economy is great and the Iraq war is going well DOES make it so in this country. *banging head on desk repeatedly*

[yellowcanine]

10. There goes Michigan. Jobs will be lost at suppliers as well. Damn. We

can't afford another 4 years of George Bush.

[NickB79]

12. Hey Ford, here's a marketting idea I'm willing to give free of charge

BUILD FUCKING HYBRID VEHICLES!!! Toyota has been pulling in money hand over fist with their Prius, they can't make them fast enough. Maybe if you'd pull your head out of your ass and invest in some truly novel, innovative technological advances in transportation, rather than lobbying Congress to keep gas prices artificially low and trying to sell us Hummers with a straight face, you'd actually see some increases in sales?

But what do I know, I'm not a big Ford CEO or anything.....

[krkaufman]

13. All Ford can do is make excuses; Toyota took action

Parts supply affects Ford's hybrid plans

---

Dearborn, MI, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- (Ford production of) hybrid vehicles could (be) affected by a lack of domestically available parts.

Phil Martens, (a Ford VP), said Ford had to turn to foreign suppliers for access to a majority of key components to build the company's first hybrid, ...

"What is it going to take for (U.S.) suppliers to invest in this type of R&D in the United States?" Martens asked. ...

Ford's choices are to buy from foreign suppliers, encourage domestic firms to begin producing the needed components or develop their own expertise.

The Toyota Motor Corp., the first automaker to pursue hybrid technology, took the last option about a decade ago.

Few automotive suppliers in Japan had practical expertise to help Toyota create a hybrid car, so Toyota developed its own expertise internally in battery production, "degenerative brake" technology and a computer control system.

---

I expect Detroit will be begging Washington for a bail-out in 2-3 years, just like the poorly-managed big airlines after 9/11.

In my opinion, Detroit is only a step or two away from warranting "enemy of the state" status.

[krkaufman]

14. MSNBC (Mar'04): Ford turns to Toyota for hybrid car help

---

Ford turns to Toyota for hybrid car help
Former gets technology, latter gets larger market

Updated: 10:06 a.m. ET March 9, 2004

TOKYO - Toyota Motor Corp. said Tuesday that Ford Motor Co. would use some of its hybrid engine technology, in a pact that underlines the Japanese auto giant’s strong lead in eco-friendly gasoline-electric systems.
...
The auto giant went on to sign a much broader hybrid system licensing agreement with domestic rival Nissan in 2002.

Honda is the only other automaker to mass-market hybrid vehicles, and Ford is the only U.S. automaker with plans to launch a true hybrid this year -- the Escape sports utility vehicle.
...
U.S. automakers, notably General Motors Corp, have been vocal in questioning the merits of hybrid cars.

They have worked more aggressively to advance zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, which are widely believed to be at least 10 to 15 years away from being commercially viable.

---

If GM and Ford were individuals, Republicans would say that they've failed to adapt to the market and that they'll either have to adapt or find another line of work.

[dArKeR]

15. GM, Ford Cut Output After Weak Sales

General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. posted weaker U.S. sales for August on Wednesday and both cut planned fourth-quarter production as their aging vehicle lineups lost ground to rival Chrysler and some foreign brands.

GM and Ford, whose production cuts could hurt profits, capped a weak summer with their third straight month of lower sales, despite higher consumer incentives. Hurricane Charley's damaging path through Florida, high energy prices and falling consumer confidence also hurt sales results.

GM said it was disappointed with its 7 percent drop in sales. Ford reported a 5.9 percent drop in results for its U.S. brands. The results sent shivers through the industry including auto parts makers who could be hurt by the production cuts.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=749&e=1&u=/nm/20040901/bs_nm/autos_sales_dc

Year 2008, "The recovery is next quarter, says MSNBC, CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, CNBC... so vote Republican, their economic and war policies are working."