Word: volvo
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...exchange for cars, oil for the pumps of Sweden " We are leaving the defensive role Wand going on the offensive," declared Pehr Gyllenhammar, president of Volvo, Sweden's troubled giant (1977 sales: $3.6 billion). On that confident note, he announced last week a bold and imaginative reorganization that in one stroke will supply the automaker with urgently needed cash, give Sweden access to North Sea oilfields and bring in Norway as an energetic junior partner in a new binational corporation. The Norwegians, eager to use their oil riches to develop high-technology industries, called Gyllenhammar's proposal...
...Volvo's troubles are symptomatic of the ills and abuses that are rendering Swedish companies uncompetitive on the world market, yet, despite the advent of a more conservative government, Sweden remains fully committed to the welfare state. Unable to lay off surplus workers or curb ruinous absenteeism (sometimes as high as 20%), Volvo saw its operating costs soar. Once noted for well-built, moderately priced autos, Volvo was forced to increase its prices until its top-of-the-line 264GL, at $10,500, is nearly as expensive as a Cadillac Coupe De Ville. Volvo sales have slumped globally...
...time that a foreign maker has produced cars on U.S. soil. Britain's Rolls-Royce did it in Springfield, Mass., from 1921 to 1931. But Volkswagen's huge investment-a projected $250 million-makes it unique right now. No other overseas automaker has a U.S. factory operating; Volvo last year indefinitely postponed plans to build cars...
...Boss Nicolae Ceau?escu races around Bucharest in a sleek Mercedes sports coupé. The perks for the Polish elite include special schools for their children and access to luxurious vacation camps and ski resorts. Traffic literally stops for East Germany's new class; at the approach of the imported Volvo limousines carrying the party's top brass, police halt all other movement on the streets...
...Norwegian families own their homes and close to half also have vacation retreats-a cottage on the coast or a cabin in the mountains. The humble Volkswagen has been dethroned as king of the road, replaced as Norway's best-selling car by the more luxurious Volvo...