Posted on 06/11/2005 6:46:30 AM PDT by voletti
Korean cars gave Detroit fits in the late '90s by undercutting domestic small cars on price and outdoing them on quality -- then moving up into other segments. Autos from China could provide more lower-cost competition for the Big Three at a time when GM and Ford Motor Co. (F ) are already reeling. That could cost them, along with Chrysler (DCX ), more market share and prod them to move more of their own production offshore.
How fast can the Chinese gear up? The way things are going, it won't take 20 years to match Toyota Motor Corp. (TM ) quality levels, as it did for the Koreans. And with Chinese auto assembly workers earning $2 an hour -- vs. $22 in Korea and nearly $60 in the U.S. for wages and benefits -- it may not be long before China has the wherewithal to start selling competitively priced cars overseas. "The Chinese are probably five or six years away from being able to sell a competent low-end car," says auto analyst Maryann N. Keller.
The Chinese government is putting its heft behind the export push -- subsidizing the export drive of such local players as Chery and giving the likes of Honda big incentives. Beijing also is nudging foreign auto makers to divert investment into export production so local partners can become familiar with managing foreign-exchange risk and global supply chains. It's also pushing domestic companies such as Chery, Geely Auto, Brilliance China Automotive (CBA ), and Shanghai Automotive Industry to develop their own brands overseas.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessweek.com ...
True, except in one important case: government. Free market economies can adjust to demand/output, while governments just continue to grow. The long-term public sector pension/healthcare benefits present a real danger.
Yeah well please remember unions exist because of past injustices towards workers by business owners...I am married to a GM employee (management), we have seen the unions give concessions and then GM goes and cuts plants and employees anyway. The only reason the so called global economy is being sold to Americans is because of the union bashing that goes with it-divide and conquer.
Japan thanks you....of course the 200, ooo GM employees who no longer have jobs since 1993 don't like you much.
Americans will wake up one day and realize that they are out of work and no one cares any more. They will look at their expensive SUV's made overseas and just sh*t ! We are paying too much for oil. Why are we doing that? High oil prices raise the cost of goods everywhere in the U.S. from veggies to running shoes.
Pretty soon people will realize they paid too much for house they no longer can afford. When real estate goes upside down again in some sections of the country (and it will!) -- people will be forced to move to find work.
But nobody listens to me anyway. Just a geezer hiding in the Peoples Paradise of Portland. And considering registering as a Libertarian.
***It ought to be a federal felony to shop at Wal-Mart.***
Then check out the chinese goods at Dollar store.
Dollar General.
Dollar tree.
Fred's.
Attwoods.
Ace hardware.
True Value hardware.
Home Depot.
or any local Mom and Pop store.
You can run form the Chinese but you can't hide.
As 'Dilbert' said several years ago.
With slave labor you don't have to worry about the goods made of Friday not being up to standard.
Say what you want about Kia, but I just hit 20k miles without any problems whatsoever. I could have spent twice as much for a Chevy Cavalier, but I'd be on my fourth or fifth warranty repair by now.
libertarians, are open border too, but what ya gonna do.
Everyone puts down parties that are not open borders, and hates Americans who want to stop this ridiculous landslide we are all on.
Is there a party that supports closing our borders and enforcing the laws now on the books?
Pat Buchanan's party. Everyone hates him. Call him to Zeno phobic
I can imagine how they'll handle warranty problems:
a.) You bring in car.
b.) Manager tells you nothing wrong with car.
c.) You insist something IS wrong with car.
d.) Manager flags tank which quickly rolls over you.
e.) Your former car is sold to another sucker.
No more warranty problems.
Yeah, think of the inherent cost advantage they get by pirating everybody else's technology.
Of course, no tree grows to the sky. As w/ Korea or Japan before them, their wages and standard of living will eventually rise to at least mitigate the current disparity.
I disagree. I live 8 miles from the Chicago/Hegewisch Ford Plant, which builds the Five-Hundred, my neighbor is in management and told me these are the shoddiest made cars out of the 60 year old plant. Earlier this year, 3,ooo were scrapped after production because of multiple quality problems.
The American consumer will buy quality and reliable cars at a good price, that is why Toyota, Honda and Nissan continuosly show profits.
Protectionism, as some posters are suggesting, would result in that same Ford plant charging 50% more for the same crappy car. I remember the 1970s and early 80s well, when AMC and Chrysler went out of business (Carter bailed out Chrysler, I never agreed with it).
I don't want to pay 30 grand for a 4 cylinder GM/Ford sedan that will be in the junk yard 5 years after I drive it off the lot, and neither do most consumers. Don't blame the consumer.
If GM and Ford can't compete, that's their fault, not mine.
With some encouragement maybe the Minutemen Project will become a political party. They don't have to put candidates up against the legacy parties for every office, just when the legacy parties run candidates who favor migrant (legal or not) labor over citizens and laugh at our sovereignty.
GM announced they were firing 25,000 peeps over the next few years. I think they are building auto manufacturing plants in China. Are they gonna hire 25,000 Chinese people to work at these plants?
Population wise, India is the world's largest Republic, a British influenced nation. Comparing them with China, as the other poster did, is ludicrous.
Wow, I can't wait to see the owner's manual. Thank you for buying much joy car. Start engine train before safe drive. Install much memory when possible.
MM
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