Dan Neil writes about the one-world of automobile manufacturing. He begins:
Cadillacs built in Sweden and sold in Bavaria. Chevrolets built in Korea and sold in Romania. The big bruiser Chrysler 300C built in Austria and sold wherever asphalt needs a good spanking.
Never mind the 200-mph Bugattis and stretch Rolls-Royces. The story of the 2005 centennial Geneva Auto Show (through Sunday) is one of vast global alliance-building as car companies go lean, cut development costs and reach out to new markets. Last week, to cite one example, production of the new Toyota Aygo minicar commenced in Kolin in the Czech Republic; the tiny town car is being built alongside the Citroén C1 and the Peugeot 107 and the threesome will vie for sales in the emergent Eastern European market.
Neil’s discussion of the fallout from the weakening dollar is informative.