President Barack Obama pledged Thursday morning in Seoul, Korea to ratify a free-trade agreement with South Korea that has been stuck for two years. Click here for AIADA's trade brochure. Obama concluded a four-nation Asian trip with meetings with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and a brief news conference. Both leaders said a free-trade accord could be reached that would deepen the nations' ties and boost jobs in the U.S. President Lee cautioned that South Korea is already moving forward with trade deals with Europe that are opening Korean markets to U.S. competitors. Click here for AIADA Chairman Russ Darrow's take on this trade gap. "In the United States, there is a misperception that the [free-trade agreement] once passed will only benefit Korea and will be detrimental to American consumers, which is not true," Mr. Lee said. Mr. Lee characterized as "minuscule" the trade surplus that South Korea has with the U.S., a characterization Mr. Obama agreed with. The U.S. president challenged Congress to show more sophistication on trade issues. According to the Wall Street Journal, the U.S.- Korea free-trade agreement, the largest the U.S. has negotiated since NAFTA, is expected to boost annual two-way trade between South Korea and the U.S. by $10 billion to $20 billion about five years after ratification. But U.S. officials in recent weeks have said they may want changes in the auto section of the agreement, though they haven't announced specifics. For more on trade, click here.
The government's Cash for Clunkers program offered a lot of Americans great deals on new cars. Now, according to the Detroit News, those falling prices have shifted into reverse. The Labor Department reported Wednesday that consumer prices for new cars rose 1.6 percent, the largest monthly increase since May 1981. Used cars also saw a price hike of 3.4 percent in October - their largest increase since September 1980. All of this came against the backdrop of a sluggish economy - consumer prices are lower than a year ago and the higher car prices accounted for 90 percent of the overall 0.3 percent consumer price gains last month. Jesse Toprak, vice president for industry trends and insight with Truecar, a company that tracks car buying habits, said he expects car prices to remain high for the rest of the year because dwindling vehicle inventories will keep dealer incentives down. But Toprak said consumers can still find a deal, especially if they're willing to buy an '09. His company found that "Black Friday," the hot shopping day after Thanksgiving, was the best day of the year to buy a car. Most consumers are shopping for sweaters instead of cars, average car incentives tend to be higher than normal that day and many dealers facing end-of-the-month sales quotas are more willing to bargain. Click here for more on the trend toward rising car prices as the end of the year approaches.
The first U.S.-built Kia vehicle, a white All-new Sorento, rolled off the production line Tuesday at Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia (KMMG), officially opening the first U.S. Kia Motors plant. Click here for a picture. KMMG is expected to produce 300,000 vehicles at full capacity and employ 2,500 people, with on-site and nearby suppliers creating 7,500 additional jobs in the region. Click here for a map. "The start of production for our first manufacturing facility in the United States further demonstrates our commitment to growth in North America and we are proud to be adding 2,500 jobs to the local economy," said B.M. Ahn, President and CEO of Kia Motors America and KMMG. KMMG continues Kia Motors' aggressive investment in the U.S. market. Since 2002, more than $1.3 billion has been invested in various facilities throughout the country, including a dedicated corporate campus and design center in Irvine, Calif., a state-of-the-art research and development center in Ann Arbor, Mich. and custom-built vehicle proving grounds in Mojave, Calif. For more on Kia's U.S. plant, including why workers will love its flooring, click here.
BMW is delaying the U.S. introduction of the redesigned X3 to launch a system designed to encourage buyers to custom order the crossover to their specifications, says Jim O'Donnell, president of BMW of North America. According to Automotive News, the delay could put the X3 in U.S. showrooms in mid-2011, up to six months after the U.S.-built X3 goes on sale in Europe. Click here for a photo. In the past, BMW launched American-built cars, such as the X5, in the United States before introducing them in Europe. The move also will allow BMW to offer up to four engine variants at launch, making lower-priced versions available from the outset. Engines could include a four-cylinder gasoline and a diesel, O'Donnell says. BMW will decide by year end whether to offer a six- or four-cylinder diesel. The X3 is available only with all-wheel drive and starts at $39,575. The base-model, front-drive Mercedes-Benz GLK starts at $35,475. Both stickers include shipping. BMW probably will allow dealers to order vehicles for their stocks with the top 10 options customers want. If a customer wants any of the other features, a special order would have to be placed. Click here for more on BMW's plans for the U.S. roll out of its X3 crossover.
Mark Phelan at the Detroit Free Press writes that the 2010 Porsche Panamera S delivers on the automaker's promise that it could build a sedan that's true to the spirit and performance of its legendary sports cars. The vehicle is certain to please Porsche owners who have longed for a more accommodating car that drives like a true Porsche. Click here for a photo. The S and 4S come with a responsive 400-horsepower 4.8-liter V8. Twin turbos boost that engine's output to 500 horsepower in the top model. All Panameras get Porsche's superb new seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, which combines a manual transmission's control and fuel-efficiency with the comfort of an automatic. The Panamera's attractive and practical hatchback body offers a 15.7-cubic-foot cargo space. It's 0.7 cubic feet smaller than the S550 and 2.3 cubic feet smaller than the Lexus LS 460's roomy trunk. The Panamera is 3.5 to 4.2 inches shorter than its Audi, BMW, and Lexus rivals; it's 10.9 inches shorter than the Mercedes. The Porsche's interior offers plenty of head, shoulder, and legroom for all four occupants. The layout of controls and gauges is simple and logical. Click here for a photo gallery of the Panamera, courtesy of Autoblog. Click here for Phelan's full review of Porsche's first sedan.
In today's competitive auto market, it is vital to provide cars that customers are actually looking for - otherwise you may be stuck with unwanted vehicles sitting on your lot. Whether at auction or trade-in, it's important to ask yourself, "Is this the right car at the right price for my market?" AIADA and our Affinity Partner CARFAX® are pleased to offer members the chance to learn best practices in enhancing your used car acquisition process - so you can improve your inventory turn-time, hold more gross in each transaction and of course, sell more vehicles. Join Jay Luna, Process Improvement Manager at CARFAX® for a free, 30-minute webinar this Friday, November 20 at 12 p.m. EST. Jay will discuss what to look for when pricing the cars you are bidding on at auction or appraising at trade-in and best practices other dealers are implementing today. He has worked with dealers to help leverage these same best practices to positively affect their sales processes. These important pieces of information can ultimately save your dealership thousands of dollars. Don't miss out on this opportunity - register today!
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