Trump Praises Japanese Auto Investment in U.S. as Tariff Threat Looms
President Donald Trump on Friday praised Japanese automakers for making increased investment in the United States, in a possible sign that Tokyo could escape U.S. national security tariffs on the country’s auto exports, reports Politico. “I appreciate the fact that you're sending many automobile companies into Michigan, and Ohio, and Pennsylvania, and North Carolina,” Trump said during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Both men are in Osaka for the annual Group of 20 leaders‘ summit, which Abe is hosting this year. To underscore Trump’s point, the White House distributed a glossy map showing that Japan has made “FIVE Additional Investments in JUST ONE MONTH.” In reality, Japanese automakers have been making cars in the United States for decades. Toyota alone estimates it has invested over $60 billion in U.S. facilities supporting a workforce of over 475,000 direct and indirect employees at its manufacturing plants, car dealerships and other operations. Read more here.
June U.S. Auto Sales Expected to Decline
Forecasters said U.S. auto sales would be down again slightly in June, about in line with auto sales so far this year, reports Forbes. Cox Automotive said on June 26 it expects June U.S. auto sales of about 1.5 million, down about 2.7% from a year ago. Automakers in the U.S. market are expected to report June auto sales results on July 2, according to Autodata. TrueCar ALG said separately on June 26 that the average daily selling rate for June would decline just 0.3%, adjusting for the fact that June 2019 had one fewer official selling day than June 2018, excluding Sundays and holidays. Through May, U.S. auto sales year to date were 6.9 million cars and trucks combined, down 2.4% from a year ago, according to the Automotive News Data Center. May sales were better than expected, down just 0.3%, to about 1.6 million cars and trucks, Automotive News said. Read more here.
Subaru, Mazda Join Toyota's Self-Driving Vehicle Venture
Suzuki, Mazda, Subaru, Isuzu, and Daihatsu said Friday they are each investing 57.1 million yen ($530,620) in the on-demand, self-driving car service, reports Automotive News. Five Japanese automakers including Subaru Corp., Suzuki Motor Corp., and Mazda Motor Corp. are each investing 2 percent in the on-demand, self-driving vehicle service set up by SoftBank Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp. Mazda, Suzuki, and Subaru, Isuzu Motors and Toyota's compact car unit Daihatsu will each invest 57.1 million yen ($530,620) in the venture -- dubbed Monet -- in return for a 2 percent stake, the companies said in a statement Friday. SoftBank and Toyota will each retain their 35 percent stakes in the company, which is now capitalized at $26.6 million. The latest investors join Honda Motor Co. and Hino Motors, Toyota's truck-making operations. Read more here.
Ford to Slash Jobs as Part of European Shake-Up
Ford Motor Co. laid out plans to close factories in Europe and cut 12,000 jobs, or more than 20% of its European workforce, aiming to return to a profit in the region and focus on technologies that are reshaping the auto industry, reports The Wall Street Journal. The automaker had broached the revamp of its European operations in January as part of a broader cost-cutting effort, with the company pivoting toward electric vehicles and autonomous driving. Ford, which has struggled to maintain profitability in Europe for years, said Thursday it would shrink its manufacturing footprint in the region to 18 plants from 24 by the end of next year. The company aims to rely more on imported passenger cars and locally built, higher-margin commercial vehicles for its sales in Europe, where automakers are now struggling with sluggish consumer demand after years of growth. Read more here.
CPO Sales Up 2% Through May, Poised for 9th Straight Record
Signs are pointing to another best-ever year for the certified pre-owned market, reports Auto Remarketing. There were 1.16 million CPO vehicle sales in the first five months of the year, according to Tuesday’s Data Point report from Cox Automotive, beating year-ago figures by 2%. May continued what has now been a three-month streak of certified sales increases, following a slow start to 2019. Cox Automotive said there were about 252,000 CPO sales in May, up from 249,000 a year ago. The company said the certified pre-owned market is “growing at a comfortable pace,” with this likely to be the ninth straight record year. “As the used-vehicle market continues to see strong consumer demand with ample supply of off-lease units coming to market, the CPO market is primed to continue to see favorable growth and is on pace to set another record,” Cox Automotive analysts said. Read more here.
Around the Web
BMW Says Electrification is Overhyped [Autoblog]
Car Expenses May Eat Up Nearly a Fifth of Your Income [NY Times]
Auto Collecting Moves Forward [NY Times]
Fired Workers Sue Ford for Age Discrimination [The Detroit News]
