The management of
General Motors Company's
(
GM
) European arm, Opel, will present a business plan to its
supervisory board late June regarding its operations. The unit is
under pressure from its parent company to mitigate continuous
losses.
Opel is also in a dilemma about closing its factory in Bochum.
The plant, located in the Ruhr region, has been devastated by coal
mine closures. It is likely to shut after the company decided to
manufacture the next generation of its popular Astra compact in
Ellesmere Port in Britain and Gliwice in Poland at lower wages.
However, Opel's chief executive officer, Karl-Friedrich Stracke,
stated that the company would honor the labor agreement valid
through 2014. But he could not ensure whether jobs will be
safeguarded after 2014 at the plant.
A few months back, Opel revealed that it expects to report an
operating loss of €1 billion ($1.3 billion) in 2012 due to fewer
car sales than anticipated. The unit expects to sell 1.4 million
vehicles in 2012, which are about 100,000 units less than the
earlier projected sales.
In order to reverse the 12 years of losses in Europe (totaling
more than $12 billion), particularly from the Opel brand, GM has
recently formed a global alliance with
PSA
Peugeot Citroen
(
PEUGY
). The pact will help both the automakers reduce at least $2
billion in costs.
The present Euro-zone financial crisis has affected the
operations of many global automakers, especially GM and
Ford Motor Co.
(
F
). Both automakers have a significant exposure to the market.
Car dealers in Europe are trying very hard to entice consumers
with the help of steep discounts and other sales promotions, which
would put downward pressure on their margins.
Last month, the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association
or ACEA reported a 6.5% fall in car sales to 1.06 million units as
consumers stayed away from showrooms on the back of a weak economy
triggered by the sovereign-debt crisis in the Euro-zone.
Most major markets recorded a double-digit fall in new car
registrations in the continent during the month, except Germany and
the U.K. GM posted an 11.1% fall in sales to 85,493 units driven by
lower Opel/Vauxhall (16.9%) and GM brand (50%) sales, while Ford
saw an 8.3% drop in sales to 79,223 units.
GM, a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold) company, reported a $100 million fall
in profits to $1.6 billion in the first quarter of 2012 from $1.7
billion in the same quarter of 2011, before special items, due to
lower profits from its European operations.
On per share basis, adjusted profits were 93 cents during the
quarter, down 2 cents from the first quarter of 2011. However, it
exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 84 cents. Adjusted
earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) dipped to $2.2 billion in
the quarter from $2.0 billion in the year-ago quarter.
Revenues in the quarter went up 4% to $37.8 billion on a 3% rise
in unit sales to 2.3 million vehicles globally. It was higher than
the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $36.4 billion. The automaker
occupied a worldwide market share of 11.3% during the quarter,
compared with 11.4% a year-ago.
FORD MOTOR CO (F): Free Stock Analysis Report
GENERAL MOTORS (GM): Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment
Research