General Motors pulls out of Portugal

1/11/2008

Car manufacturers General Motors have announced that, as of November 1st, they will be terminating their car loan services with seven European countries, including Portugal and Spain, due to the current economic crisis.

Russia, Finland, Greece, Norway and Slovakia will also see General Motors’ withdrawal.

This measure, the result of a reduction of company capital, was announced one month after the company claimed to be increasing the number of requisite criteria to apply for a loan, as well as the intention to increase taxes applied to retailer’s loans to their consumers.

Recent bankruptcy of various investment institutions and the global financial crisis on the whole is causing banks to significantly reduce loans between each other, increasing the costs of financing and subsequently forcing companies like General Motors to up their criteria for conceding loans.

This follows sackings, announcements of production slashes, and the temporary or definite closing of various manufacturing plants in both the USA and Europe, caused by the slowing of demand and general fall in worldwide sales.

Link: http://www.the-news.net/cgi-bin/google.pl?id=983-10

Diga que não é assim!

(Say it isn't so- English translation)

É assim, é! E algo me diz que o fim da crise não está à vista...

É assim, é! E algo me diz que o fim da crise não está à vista...

Infelizmente, não posso deixar de concordar. A reformatação da Economia Global's só agora começou. Probabilidades de ir para uma geração sobre a medida.

O que você acha?

(thank you Google translate)

Infelizmente, não posso deixar de concordar. A reformatação da Economia Global's só agora começou. Probabilidades de ir para uma geração sobre a medida.

O que você acha?

(thank you Google translate)

Last sentence before you asked me what I think got lost in the Google translator, but I'll throw my in:

I was reading a research note from a Bank this week and they did a comparison of the Great Depression to the trends seen since the peak of the .com bubble... It's amazing how similar the patterns are, with the exception of the variables related to government intervention and adjustment of real interest rates, which have been incredibly quick in the 2000s and were very slow during the Great Depression. We are going through an era very similar to the Great Depression.

I don't think a major reformatting or reshaping of the global economy is starting now, as I think it started when the .com bubble burst. But changes will become more visible with time. Investment will have to become much more important in the US economy, which means you guys will have to save more and consume less. China cannot grow at 10% a year indefinitely (if it economy is indeed growing at the pace the statistics say they're growing) and cannot accumulate foregn currency reserves indefinitely without severely disrupting the global economy.

Last sentence before you asked me what I think got lost in the Google translator, but I'll throw my in:

I was reading a research note from a Bank this week and they did a comparison of the Great Depression to the trends seen since the peak of the .com bubble... It's amazing how similar the patterns are, with the exception of the variables related to government intervention and adjustment of real interest rates, which have been incredibly quick in the 2000s and were very slow during the Great Depression. We are going through an era very similar to the Great Depression.

I don't think a major reformatting or reshaping of the global economy is starting now, as I think it started when the .com bubble burst. But changes will become more visible with time. Investment will have to become much more important in the US economy, which means you guys will have to save more and consume less. China cannot grow at 10% a year indefinitely (if it economy is indeed growing at the pace the statistics say they're growing) and cannot accumulate foregn currency reserves indefinitely without severely disrupting the global economy.

I agree with your 'dot.com' assessment. We couldn't/can't/shouldn't rely on other so-called emerging economies to do our heavy-lifting for us. What do we then do with the millions here looking for work? China maintains a ready-force of 300 million (sure to be increasing) unemployed. The same number in China exist on the equivalent of $1 US funds per day. How does that playing field get levelled?

Google Translator, who needs that? Here is what I do, I translate what ZL-1 says into as close to Spanish as I can get, in my head, then I translate that into English, which I then translate into the original German which all other languages sprang from!

Edited November 1, 200817 yr by Pontiac Custom-S

Google Translator, who needs that? Here is what I do, I translate what ZL-1 says into as close to Spanish as I can get, in my head, then I translate that into English, which I then translate into the original German which all other languages sprang from!

Quote: "This post has been edited by Pontiac Custom-S: Today, 07:23 PM"

I see you're getting very good at it too.

Quote: "This post has been edited by Pontiac Custom-S: Today, 07:23 PM"

I see you're getting very good at it too.

The only time I normally edit is when I see spelling issues, remember, English is not my 1st language.