In 2008, the automotive industry suffered a big hit which caused a crisis in the United States economy. During the 2000s there was a phase known as the “SUV CRAZE” where the majority of sales for General Motors (G.M.) and Chrysler were “pickup trucks and sports utility vehicles”(Auto Industry Crisis). Trucks and SUVs have been known to use a lot of gasoline to help with their overall performance. But during 2003, the price of oil per barrel “went up from $30 to $135”(Rod Franchi). This caused the price of gasoline to rise and discouraged people from buying these big trucks that would use a lot of gasoline. This caused everything in the auto industry to go downhill. In 2007 around 16 million were sold, but in 2009 that number went down to 9 million cars sold. Now with fewer cars being sold G.M. and Chrysler were losing money and was desperate for help. With congress trying to find a solution, they proposed an auto bailout that would help the industry from dying. Although many argue the bailout gives an excuse to big car companies to fail, it was necessary because it helped save and create millions of jobs around the country. The auto bailout was an $80 billion bailout issued to G.M. and Chrysler to stimulate the growth and production of the automotive industry. The government made the bailout because it had three main objections: Save jobs, improve the economy, and get repaid as by G.M. and Chrysler (“Successful Bailout”). But there was a big problem that happened. G.M. and Chrysler could not pay back the debt that they had because they didn’t gain enough money to pay back the debt. This worried the government and the people of the United States because if the bailout failed then the whole automotive industry would die. So the gov... ... middle of paper ... ...6 Sept. 2010: n. pag. Issues and Controversies. Web. 21 May 2014. Bump, Philip. "The Auto Bailout Saved 1.5 Million Jobs- And Likely Made $50,000 On Each One." The Wire 9 Dec. 2013: n. pag. Print. Dionne, E. J., Jr. "The Auto Industry Lives. Can We Admit That Government Intervention Worked?" Washington Post 2 Aug. 2010: n. pag. Print. Franchi, Rod. "Guided Notes on Curing the Great Recession Lecture." Novi High School. Lecture. Frontline: Inside the Meltdown. Dir. Michael Kirk. 2009. Film. Hassett, Kevin A. "Obama's auto-bailout fiction." Editorial. National Review 3 Apr. 2012: n. pag. Print. Rattner, Steven. "Delusions About the Detroit Bailout." The New York Times 23 Feb. 2012: n. pag. Print. - - -. The 2009 Bailout Was Necessary, Argues Rattner. N.p.: Stanford Business, 2011. Print. "The Unpopular, Succesful Auto Bailout." The American Prospect: n. pag. Print.
The United States recession (which lead to a world recession), began in 1997 and significantly impacted the United States automobile industry during the recession period. The United States automobile industry is still reeling from the effects of the recession throughout the period of economic recovery that continues today. According to Chu and Su, “In this credit-driven recession, one of the hardest hit sectors was the automotive industry, along with the housing and financial markets. Chrysler and General Motors were pushed into bankruptcy; and 276,000 jobs in the automobile and parts industry were destroyed, a whopping 36 percent of the total employment in the sector”.
In 2009, the Obama Administration bailed out the General Motors and Chrysler automobile companies. Having begun their decent into bankruptcy in 2008, losing thousands of jobs, sales plummeting forty percent, with a high threat of liquidation, General Motors and Chrysler finally reached government-assisted chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009. Obama allocated eighty five billion dollars in TARP funds to the auto industry, close to fifty billion dollars of it going to General Motors. The allocated funds were successful in keeping two of the Big Three auto companies afloat, keeping taxes from sky rocketing and saving millions of jobs.
Two major car companies, General Motors (GM) and Chrysler, went bankrupt during the Great Recession. The Government had to make a choice; to get involved with helping them, which would help the economy, or let them fight for themselves. Both choices would leave some American citizens mad at the government. The Government decided to help them by establishing the Auto Bailout along with other programs like TARP. Although some think the Auto Bailout didn’t help small supplier companies, it was the right move for the government to take because it helped stop our economy from going further into a depression.
In many ways, the automotive industry has huge impacts on Canada. The impact it has creates jobs, and services. It also boosts economy and contributes to its success. Over the last two decades, the automotive industry has been a leading contributor to Canada’s economy and is a primary factor as to whether or not the economy will be successful. There are many contributing branches of the sector that allow it to be successful. This is shown through the production and manufacturing of vehicles, as well as the sale of the vehicles. The automotive industry has had a significant impact on Canada’s economy over the last 10 years. If the production and sale of domestic vehicles were to decline, Canada’s economy to be severely crippled and fall back into a recession.
In the midst of the current economic downturn, dubbed the “Great Recession”, it is natural to look for one, singular entity or person to blame. Managers of large banks, professional investors and federal regulators have all been named as potential creators of the recession, with varying degrees of guilt. No matter who is to blame, the fallout from the mistakes that were made that led to the current crisis is clear. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the current unemployment rate is 9.7%, with 9.3 million Americans out of work (Bureau of Labor Statistics). Compared to a normal economic rate of two or three percent, it is clear that the decisions of one group of people have had a profound affect on the lives of millions of Americans. The real blame for this crisis rests on the heads of the managers that attempted to play the financial system through securitization, and forced the American government to “bail out” their companies with taxpayer money. These managers, specifically the managers of AIG and Citigroup, should be subject to extreme pay caps for the length of time that the American taxpayer holds majority holdings in their companies, as a punitive punishment for causing the Great Recession.
In the latter part of 2008, the United States’ economy was rapidly plummeting - the stock market crashed, the housing bubble burst and gas prices skyrocketed. The majority of U.S. based firms faced the reality that they would not be able to survive during such desperate economic times. The U.S. automobile industry, in particular, began to buckle under the depressed economy. The government stepped in proposing a multi-billion dollar bailout to stimulate the economy and restore economic balance. The possibility of this unprecedented government intervention was condemned by many economists. If the government helped the ailing automotive industry, this industry would have to tighten their expenditures and plan for the future to prove to critics of the bailout that they would use the government funding to add value to the economy once again.
...“Obama Stokes Deficit Fight.” The Wall Street Journal Politics. The Wall Street Journal, n.d. Web. 6 June 2011. .
The total cost of the Recovery act to US taxpayers was $787 billion dollars. The bill itself was created with the belief that increases in spending on the federal level would create and save jobs during recessions. More specifically, the purpose of the bill was to create jobs, drop the unemployment rate, stimulate the economy, have better quality of schools, and have better quality and efficiency of everyday life. The allocations of funds designated by the law are as follows: $81 Billion for protecting the vulnerable, $43 billion for energy, $59 billion for healthcare, $144 billion for state budget relief, $8 billion for other needs, $111 Billion for infrastructure and science, $53 Billion in education and jobs training, and the largest portion $288 Billion in the form of tax relief through the use of tax credits and increase business deductions.
In 2009, the United States economy began to recover from the Great Recession. To aid in the recovery, the newly elected president Barak Obama created the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act better known as the second of two “Stimulus Packages.” Pa...
Model T’s were everywhere in America, even long after Ford stopped production in 1927. (Henry) While Ford was the number one brand, selling the most cars throughout the early 1900’s, the Model T created a new industry that is distinctly American; the auto industry. Three manufacturers, Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler dominated the American auto industry, and all three companies still produce cars today. The Model T gave birth to the competitive auto market. To this day, car companies in America are constantly racing to innovate, improve, and outsell their competitors. Manufacturing of cars “became the backbone of a new consumer goods-oriented society. By the mid-1920s it ranked first in value of product, and in 1982 it provided one out of every six jobs in the United States.” (history –idk yet) The demand for cars also resulted in a booming petroleum industry, and a high demand for metals, like steel. ( History idk yet) Furthermore, with so many people driving cars, construction of roads was necessary. The popularity of automobiles set off a chain reaction that created new opportunities all across the country. All sections of the modern automotive industry, from marketing to manufacturing, as well industries like petroleum refining, steel production, and road construction, can trace their beginnings to the Ford Model
General Motors is one of the world's most dominant automakers from 1931. After 1980s economic recession the main goal for automobile companies was cost reduction. Customers became more price-sensitive. Also Japanese competitors came into market with the new effective system of production. So market was highly competitive and directed toward price reduction. The case states that in 1991 GM suffered $ 4.5 billion losses and most part of the costs of manufacturing was due to purchased components. GM NA hired Lopez in order to find the way from "extraordinary" situation and reduce costs.
Cox, He, Mclean, Russel, Tse, Waananen. (2011) . Charting the American Debt Crisis, New York Times- Politics
In the July 1997 issue of Commentary, James Q. Wilson challenges the consensus among academia’s finest regarding the automobile in his bold article, Cars and Their Enemies. Directed towards the general public, his article discredits many of the supposed negatives of the automobile raised by experts, proves that the personal car is thriving and will continue to thrive because it meets individual preference over other means of transportation, as well as presents solutions to the social costs of cars. Wilson emphasizes that no matter what is said and done in eliminating the social costs of the automobile, experts are not going to stop campaigning against it.
Finally, many car companies make more efficient cars and hybrid cars. Companies trying to boost their sales through efficient cars and lower gas cost for the consumer. Because of the higher prices of gas consumers are looking for more efficient cars. Gas prices left big companies like Ford, Toyota, and Dodge slow which it had a direct effect in the economy and the workforce. Many people lost their jobs over the passed six months because of the effect of the slow economy.
Starting in the 1920’s America began its shift towards a consumer culture as the economic growth of the nation began to depend more on the proliferation of consumer goods than of capital goods. Even at the outset of this trend, the automobile held a significant place in the new consumer economy. The automobile, which was once thought of as a rare luxury, was being sold by the millions. Assembly lines were becoming more efficient, thus allowing cars to be made more cheaply allowing the price of automobiles to drop. The growth of the automobile helped stimulate the economy through its dependence on other industries such as glass, rubber and steel, which were connected to the production of cars. These automobile related industries created new jobs, greater affluence and more spending power for millions of American consumers. Even at the beginning of America’s transformation into the consumer culture of today the automobile was at the forefront this conversion.