GM
Industrie automobile. La croisée des chemins
(2011). Industrie automobile. La croisée des chemins.
Etudes. L’industrie automobile a profondément structuré nos sociétés au XXe siècle : ses procédés de fabrication, ainsi que ses rapports sociaux, se sont étendus à l’ensemble de l’industrie, cependant que la généralisation de la possession de voitures individuelles structurait autour d’elle les espaces urbains.
Cette prédominance a été contestée dans les années 1970, avec la critique de la société de consommation et la mise au jour des problèmes de sécurité et de pollution engendrés par la circulation. Plus tard, l’explosion de la demande, puis de la production, dans les pays émergents va poser de façon plus aiguë les questions de la limitation des ressources fossiles et des conséquences climatiques du tout-voiture.
La crise de 2008 a accentué la prise de conscience de la nécessité de réviser au niveau mondial les procédés de fabrication et les usages de l’automobile. Confrontée à de nouveaux défis, l’industrie (notamment française – Renault et PSA) a commencé à explorer des pistes : production dans les pays émergents de véhicules très bon marché également vendables dans les pays développés, délocalisation des activités de conception, perspectives prometteuses de la voiture électrique dès lors que s’ouvrent de vastes marchés... L’industrie automobile semble être au seuil d’une révolution.
Les économies développées face aux pays émergents: L’Union Européenne mise à l’épreuve de la politique industrielle chinoise
(2011). Les économies développées face aux pays émergents: L’Union Européenne mise à l’épreuve de la politique industrielle chinoise.
Sciences politiques. Sciences politiques, études européennes, 64.L'industrie automobile occupe une place particulièrement intéressante au sein de l'Union Européenne et en Chine. Elle a constitué un des piliers de la capacité industrielle de nombreux États européens au 20e siècle et se trouvait au cœur des mouvements qui ont amené sa particularité au « modèle social européen ». Face à ce relatif aboutissement de l'industrie européenne, apparait aujourd'hui une Chine qui est à un moment différent du développement industriel. Non contente de produire des biens manufacturés à faible valeur ajoutée, la Chine vise ce qui a fait le cœur de la puissance industrielle occidentale : les produits à haute composante technologique, comme l'automobile aujourd'hui et l'aéronautique demain.
En raison de l'importance de l'industrie automobile pour l'Europe, l'Union européenne (UE) trouve des intérêts à défendre ses constructeurs à l'intérieur et à l'extérieur de l'espace communautaire. Le Droit étant au cœur du processus d’intégration européenne et l’UE étant envisagée par de nombreux auteurs comme une « puissance normative », le moyen étudié dans ce travail pour défendre les intérêts européens à l'étranger est la Norme. Autrement dit, l’Union Européenne parvient-elle, en Chine, à défendre les intérêts des constructeurs automobiles originaires de ses États-membres par le recours à la norme ? L'objet de ce travail est de tenter d'apporter des éléments de réponse à cette question.
Vous devez vous enregistrer ou vous connecter pour télécharger le fichier attaché.
The US automobile market after the crisis: back to business as usual or birth of a new industry?
(2011). The US automobile market after the crisis: back to business as usual or birth of a new industry?.
Gerpisa colloquium. The US automobile market after the crisis: back to business as usual or birth of a new industry?
Bruno Jetin
The US auto industry has suffered its worst crisis since the thirties. Since the spring of 2010, it is recovering progressively. GM and Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy as new slimmed-down companies with fewer brands, plants, workers, less debt and market share. It seems that the new “medium three” (GM, Ford and Chrysler) are now making profit in a market of 11 million vehicles sales a year in the US not only by selling high-margin light-trucks but also low-margin compact cars, among them hybrid cars. They have repaid their loans and have gone public again, a move that gives the government a way to progressively sell its stake in the companies' stock. They also seem better prepared to cope with the new gas price hike for they have changed their product mix to emphasize more small cars and fewer sport utility vehicles. But behind these goods news there are still factors of fragility. The US economy is recovering slowly and unemployment stays at a high level contrary to the previous recessions. A new jobless recovery as after the dotcom bubble burst in 2001 seems under way. The structural problems that have led to the crisis have worsened. Family income has dropped, poverty has risen and many have lost their health insurance. In this context, the rebound of the automobile market is no doubt fragile. The temptation is strong to use the traditional recipes such as indebtedness. Banks and captive finance automobile companies have started to issue loans more actively. Subprime auto credit is back. More than 859, 000 new cars were sold to consumers with a subprime credit rating in 2010, according to CNW Marketing research. Banks and auto loan makers are flushed with money and are making large profit on new loans since the policy of “quantitative easing” of the FED has lowered interest rates to nearly zero. GM has spent $3.5 billion to buy AmeriCredit, an auto subprime lender company, precisely to reap profits from this lucrative debt market. Another reason is to increase sales by lending to customers with a questionable credit rating. The danger is to be dependent again on bad loans to increase car sales.
Our contribution will analyse these contradictory tendencies. In a first part, we will analyse the structural fragilities of the recovery on the demand side. In a second part, we will present the public policies and firms’ strategies in favour of hybrid cars and their impact on the product mix.
The US automobile market after the crisis: back to business as usual or birth of a new industry?
Bruno Jetin lire la suite
Vous devez vous enregistrer ou vous connecter pour télécharger le fichier attaché.
The demand for automobile in the USA before and after the crisis
(2010). The demand for automobile in the USA before and after the crisis.
Gerpisa colloquium.
The first objective of our contribution is to analyse the evolution of the demand for automobile of US households before and after the crisis that broke in 2008. We study the impact of the income distribution at the national level on households’ consumption and more specifically on automobile outlays on the long-term period. We also analyse the impact of households’ equities and debt on automobile demand and the evolution of the financing of automobile purchase. We also analyse the evolution of the price and cost usage of automobiles in the US. We evaluate the changes of these variables before and after the crisis using the most updated data available. The second objective is to evaluate the role of the federal state in the shaping of the automobile demand. We analyse specifically the role of the fiscal and environmental regulations. We show that the regulation adopted favoured the SUV segment to the benefit of the big three in the years 1980-2000. But in the end, this politics is also the cause of the big three present demise. If the state had adopted a proactive innovation policy, the big three would be in a much favourable competitive position today. In conclusion, we draw the lessons of the US automobile demand pattern to explain the present state of the competitiveness of the US automobile industry.
Vous devez vous enregistrer ou vous connecter pour télécharger le fichier attaché.
Restructuring of the Automotive Industry: The Role of EWCs
(2010). Restructuring of the Automotive Industry: The Role of EWCs.
Gerpisa colloquium.
The paper pursues the question under which conditions EWCs can develop into effective tools for both employees, national interest representatives, and management for dealing with restructuring processes in the automobile industry. The aim of the paper is to examine the role of EWCs as institutions and actors of cross-border interest regulation and to clarify, under which conditions EWCs become a relevant actor and in which way they can stabilize production and employment in automotive companies.
Based on a concept and typology of international (profit and non-profit) organizations, the paper analyses the conditions and factors which influence the development of EWCs of selected OEMs with manufacturing operations in Europe.[1] Empirical evidence shows that differences in the company structure, the institutional settings of the ‘home country’ as well as actor strategies and path dependencies explain EWC characteristics and its effectiveness in restructuring processes.
The case of General Motors most drastically illustrates the dilemma which the automobile industry and its employee representatives are facing in the current crisis: How can restructuring and downsizing processes be managed by safeguarding a balanced distribution of losses and benefits among European plants and employees? As cross-border institutions, European Works Councils (EWCs) can play a decisive role in those intra-company interest regulation processes.
By now, there is a substantial number of studies dealing with different aspects of EWCs. Previous research has often dealt with the potential of EWCs to influence management decisions and to participate in joint negotiations. As previous research has pointed out, EWCs vary extremely regarding their activities and their ability to effectively influence company decisions. While some EWCs operate on a low level (as simple ‘tools’ for the distribution of selected information), others play an important role in the overall communication and interest regulation of the company at European level. Especially in the automotive sector, some EWCs have developed astonishing competencies regarding the ability participate in company decision making processes. Some EWCs, for instance at GM or Ford, are engaged negotiations with management, thereby clearly exceeding the provisions of the EWC Directive.
The paper pursues the question under which conditions EWCs can develop into effective tools for both employees, national interest representatives, and management for dealing with restructuring processes in the automobile industry. The aim of the paper is to examine the role of EWCs as institutions and actors of cross-border interest regulation and to clarify, under which conditions EWCs become a relevant actor and in which way they can stabilize production and employment in automotive companies.
Based on a concept and typology of international (profit and non-profit) organizations, the paper analyses the conditions and factors which influence the development of EWCs of selected OEMs with manufacturing operations in Europe.[1] Empirical evidence shows that differences in the company structure, the institutional settings of the ‘home country’ as well as actor strategies and path dependencies explain EWC characteristics and its effectiveness in restructuring processes.
[1] The data presented origins from the research project “The European Works Council – A Transnational Organisation?”, funded by the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG) which is carried out at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Chair Sociology/Organisation, Migration, Participation (Prof. Dr. Ludger Pries) (3/2007-6/2010).
Vous devez vous enregistrer ou vous connecter pour télécharger le fichier attaché.
