GM falls to 1950 levels; European sales stung
By Shawn Langlois, MarketWatch
Last update: 2:01 p.m. EDT Oct. 9, 2008Comments: 57SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - General Motors Corp. shares, already reeling from the widening credit crisis that has crippled Wall Street, fell as much as 22% in early trades Thursday, dropping to closing levels last seen around Christmas time in 1950.
To put the current price tag in perspective, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU:INDU
News, chart, profile, more
Last:
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
INDU, , ) , of which GM (GM:General Motors Corporation
News, chart, profile, more
Last: 5.76-1.15-16.64%
2:19pm 10/09/2008
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
GM 5.76, -1.15, -16.6%) is a component, closed 1951 at a mere 269 points.
In fact, the last time GM traded at around $5.40 a share, a typical car sold for just over $3,000, gasoline cost 20 cents a gallon, a six-pack of Coke could be yours for 37 cents, and houses went for $16,000.
GM's shares did, however, rebound from the intraday depths to trade down 14% at $5.93 midday. Rival Ford Motor Co. (F:F
News, chart, profile, more
Last:
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
F, , ) fared only slightly better, off 7% at $2.48.
David Healy, an analyst at Burnham securities, said that the stock has been overreacting to the all the negative headlines lately. "Things will get worse before they get better," he said. "But this company will get through a few more bad years and survive. This is not a stock for widows and orphans."
The latest bit of bearish news comes from one area of the company that had been a silver lining at a time of sluggish sales in GM's home market.
"We are facing an unprecedented set of economic challenges due to the global economic crisis."
— Carl-Peter Forster, president of GM Europe
GM's total European sales volume fell 1.9% to 1.62 million cars and trucks through the first three quarters of the year. A strong showing in Eastern Europe, paced by record results from the Chevy brand, was offset by a 10.7% drop in Western Europe.
The same factors that have slammed GM's U.S. sales are now stinging results in Western Europe, where a weakening economy, high gas prices and soaring raw material costs have made for an extremely difficult time to sell cars and turn profits.
"We are facing an unprecedented set of economic challenges due to the global economic crisis," Carl-Peter Forster, president of GM Europe, said in a statement. "The credit crisis and inflation from surging oil and commodities prices have seriously hurt consumer confidence."
Still, the biggest challenges clearly remain in the core U.S. market, as potential car buyers continue to grapple with slumping home prices and the inability to tap credit.
GM vehicle sales fell 15.6% to 282,806 cars and trucks in September, which was actually better than most thanks to aggressive incentive spending. The overall industry endured a 26% drop a year ago, making for the eleventh straight month of declines and the first time since February 1993 that the total number dropped below one million. See full story.
J.D. Power and Associates fanned the selling flames on Thursday when it forecast total new light-vehicle sales in the U.S. of 13.6 million cars and trucks, down 16% from 16.1 million a year ago. The firm now sees 2009 sales dropping to 13.2 million vehicles.
"Buyers are both voluntarily and involuntarily exiting the U.S. new-vehicle market," analyst Jeff Schuster said in a note. The pain will move outside the U.S. as well, he added, explaining that the global auto market "may experience an outright collapse" in 2009.
Shawn Langlois is a reporter for MarketWatch, and the editor of its community message boards.
E-mail
Print
Disable Live Quotes
Subscribe to RSS
Yahoo! Buzz
Recommend this story : 5
Save and tag this story
Comments: 57
GM has operated for years like its 1950, thats why.
- SuperMario
Add Comment
By Shawn Langlois, MarketWatch
Last update: 2:01 p.m. EDT Oct. 9, 2008Comments: 57SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - General Motors Corp. shares, already reeling from the widening credit crisis that has crippled Wall Street, fell as much as 22% in early trades Thursday, dropping to closing levels last seen around Christmas time in 1950.
To put the current price tag in perspective, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU:INDU
News, chart, profile, more
Last:
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
INDU, , ) , of which GM (GM:General Motors Corporation
News, chart, profile, more
Last: 5.76-1.15-16.64%
2:19pm 10/09/2008
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
GM 5.76, -1.15, -16.6%) is a component, closed 1951 at a mere 269 points.
In fact, the last time GM traded at around $5.40 a share, a typical car sold for just over $3,000, gasoline cost 20 cents a gallon, a six-pack of Coke could be yours for 37 cents, and houses went for $16,000.
GM's shares did, however, rebound from the intraday depths to trade down 14% at $5.93 midday. Rival Ford Motor Co. (F:F
News, chart, profile, more
Last:
Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio
Analyst
Create alertInsider
Discuss
Financials
Sponsored by:
F, , ) fared only slightly better, off 7% at $2.48.
David Healy, an analyst at Burnham securities, said that the stock has been overreacting to the all the negative headlines lately. "Things will get worse before they get better," he said. "But this company will get through a few more bad years and survive. This is not a stock for widows and orphans."
The latest bit of bearish news comes from one area of the company that had been a silver lining at a time of sluggish sales in GM's home market.
"We are facing an unprecedented set of economic challenges due to the global economic crisis."
— Carl-Peter Forster, president of GM Europe
GM's total European sales volume fell 1.9% to 1.62 million cars and trucks through the first three quarters of the year. A strong showing in Eastern Europe, paced by record results from the Chevy brand, was offset by a 10.7% drop in Western Europe.
The same factors that have slammed GM's U.S. sales are now stinging results in Western Europe, where a weakening economy, high gas prices and soaring raw material costs have made for an extremely difficult time to sell cars and turn profits.
"We are facing an unprecedented set of economic challenges due to the global economic crisis," Carl-Peter Forster, president of GM Europe, said in a statement. "The credit crisis and inflation from surging oil and commodities prices have seriously hurt consumer confidence."
Still, the biggest challenges clearly remain in the core U.S. market, as potential car buyers continue to grapple with slumping home prices and the inability to tap credit.
GM vehicle sales fell 15.6% to 282,806 cars and trucks in September, which was actually better than most thanks to aggressive incentive spending. The overall industry endured a 26% drop a year ago, making for the eleventh straight month of declines and the first time since February 1993 that the total number dropped below one million. See full story.
J.D. Power and Associates fanned the selling flames on Thursday when it forecast total new light-vehicle sales in the U.S. of 13.6 million cars and trucks, down 16% from 16.1 million a year ago. The firm now sees 2009 sales dropping to 13.2 million vehicles.
"Buyers are both voluntarily and involuntarily exiting the U.S. new-vehicle market," analyst Jeff Schuster said in a note. The pain will move outside the U.S. as well, he added, explaining that the global auto market "may experience an outright collapse" in 2009.
Shawn Langlois is a reporter for MarketWatch, and the editor of its community message boards.
Disable Live Quotes
Subscribe to RSS
Yahoo! Buzz
Recommend this story : 5
Save and tag this story
Comments: 57
GM has operated for years like its 1950, thats why.
- SuperMario
Add Comment
