Word: gm
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...addition, GM had several strikes against it going into November. Its financial problems were well known, so customers may have been worried about a potential bankruptcy and stayed away. Also, GMAC, GM's finance arm that provides credit to car buyers and dealers is practically out of money itself. It has stopped financing leases and lends money only to the most creditworthy customers. A year ago, GMAC provided financing for nearly half of GM's retail sales. Today that figure...
...closer look at the numbers reveals some systemic problems that aren't related to the current credit crunch and that GM will have a hard time overcoming. (Read "GM: Death of an American Dream...
Unlike its Japanese rivals, GM saw its sales decline begin way back at the beginning of the year, when its truck-heavy product lineup began to sag in the face of higher gasoline prices. So for the first 11 months of 2008, GM's sales have fallen 21.9%. While that is comparable to Ford and Chrysler (down 20.6% and 27.7% respectively), it's far worse than Asian competitors. Toyota is down 13.4% this year, Honda has declined just 5.4%, and Nissan has shrunk by 9.1%. They will be far better positioned to rebound once the market recovers...
Worse from a profitability point of view, GM's product line is currently skewed toward pickups and SUVs, unlike Toyota et al. So declining sales in those segments takes a much bigger bite out of GM's bottom line...
...there much hope to be gleaned from the overall market. Auto sales, and with them an opportunity for a strong GM rebound, aren't expected to recover for quite a while. GM is renowned for its optimistic sales forecasts, but its outlook for the next three years is downright dismal. (Read "The Ripple Effect of a Potential GM Bankruptcy...