Word: auto
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When Rolls--which also made aircraft engines--went bust in 1971, the auto and aerospace units became separate companies. After a variety of owners, BMW took over. It now builds the cars at a plant in Sussex, England, operating one line and one shift that turns out four or five hand-built cars a day. The 550 employees include craftsmen--skilled cabinet- and saddlemakers, for example. Most Rolls are made to order; on average, customers pay $20,000 to have their car customized. The company is adding a second line next year and a second shift in 2009 to handle...
...same time, auto-parts makers are expected to see profits drop nearly 41%, to about $1 billion in 2007, according to the Conference Board of Canada, a leading economic-research group. Not everyone is equally affected. "You have to be smart to offset the impact of foreign-exchange fluctuations," says Mark Hogan, president of Magna International, based in Aurora, Ont. The $24.2 billion company--a strategic supplier to the world's leading automakers with operations in North America, Europe and Asia--moved more than 300 jobs from Canada to Mexico in the past two years in anticipation of a stronger...
...action came after California had waited nearly two years for federal approval of its new auto regulations. Under the Clean Air Act, California has the right to pass auto emissions standards that are tougher than federal ones - a recognition of the state's historical struggles with air pollution. In this case, the state proposed rules that would have required automakers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30% in all new cars and light trucks by 2016, beginning with the model 2009 year. All California needed was a waiver from the federal government, which has been virtually automatic over the past...
...Chinese carmakers Chery Automobile and Brilliance China Automotive to break into the hugely competitive U.S., Russia is currently the world's largest overseas market for Chinese cars. It's home to three joint Chinese-Russian factories assembling cars for seven mainland marques, including Chery, Great Wall, Geely and BYD Auto. While China's overall share of Russia's foreign-car market is relatively small - just 3% in mid-2007 - sales jumped 472% in the first half of the year and are projected to double in 2008 to between 100,000 and 150,000 units, says Moscow-based Ernst & Young auto...
...With that kind of word-of-mouth, Chinese cars could account for 10% of Russia's foreign-auto market in 10 years, says Bonchev. But profits may depend on whether Chinese manufacturers are able to own and operate factories independently on Russian soil. Currently, mainland automakers are forced to rely on joint-venture assembly plants and licensing agreements to sell cars to Russians. To protect its domestic car companies, Moscow may keep it that way. Though four Chinese automakers have applied to open their own Russian plants, none have been approved, according to the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade...