Friday January 13, 2006

Big Three sales skid again

canada.com :

Struggling automakers continued to suffer last month, posting lower sales and capping a tumultuous year in which Detroit's Big Three faced changing consumer tastes and high gasoline prices. GM and Ford Motor Co., both facing deepening financial crises, said December sales were down 10.2% and 8.7%, respectively.

In sharp contrast, Toyota Motor Corp. - which may soon unseat General Motors Corp. as the world's largest automaker - posted an 8.2% increase in December sales and likely grabbed more market share from U.S. rivals.

Mark Field, Ford's vice-president of U.S. sales, said at a Los Angeles auto show yesterday that the Big Three must "change or die." John Murphy, an analyst with Merrill Lynch & Co. in New York, said "September's hurricanes and US$3-a-gallon gasoline served as a turning point in consumer preference."

GM lost US$4.8-billion in North America in the first nine months of 2005 and has had its credit rating reduced to "junk" status. It has launched a massive restructuring and some analysts are not ruling out a possible bankruptcy filing.

Google Base :
american auto-makers

(2006-01-13 08:22:26 SGT) [Biz] Permalink Comments [1]

More tax incentives from NEA and LTA to drive green

todayonline.com :

Going green is becoming more affordable for drivers. Recognising that the costs of environmentally-friendly vehicles are frustrating the green campaign, the National Environment Agency (NEA) and the Land Transport Authority have announced further tax incentives for green vehicles and Euro IV compliant diesel vehicles.

Starting this month, the road tax for green - Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), hybrid and electric - commercial vehicles and buses will be pegged to the road tax for petrol equivalents, instead of diesel equivalents, which pay 20% more tax. In addition, the special tax exemption for CNG taxis, which ended on Dec 31 last year, has been extended to the end of 2007. The NEA hopes that the incentives will encourage drivers to go green. As of last August, only 79 green vehicles were registered.

According to the NEA, CNG vehicles emit negligible particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns (PM2.5), compared to diesel-driven vehicles. PM2.5 is a key air pollutant linked to higher incidences of respiratory and heart diseases. In Singapore, diesel vehicles contribute about 50 per cent of the PM2.5 emissions.

(2006-01-13 08:10:18 SGT) [Env] Permalink

Environmental Technologies, Digital Media to be new areas for R&D

channelnewsasia.com :

Two new areas will be the focus for research and development efforts in Singapore over the next 10 years. They are Environmental and Water Technologies and Interactive and Digital Media. With an initial war chest of S$5 billion for 5 years, its directive is to fund R&D initiatives that would reap economic benefits for Singapore.

In the water industry, Singapore's expertise in using innovative technologies to produce clean water from waste water reclamation and seawater desalination has been exported to China and the Middle East. In digital media, big names, such as Lucasfilm, have set up shop here even as local companies are building up capability in areas like animation. Both areas are expected to grow at double digit rates annually world-wide.

The Foundation is looking for concrete results. It hopes to double jobs from the current 40,000 to 80,000 and triple value-added to the economy from the current S$8.9 billion to S$27 billion a year by 2015.

(2006-01-13 08:06:38 SGT) [Tech] Permalink

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