Dale, If we get a bounce here it will get sold again, imo.
Thanks, your timing appears to generally be dam good, so I'm keeping an extra close eye on my shorts. Good luck.
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Ford CEO Warns of More Cost Cuts to Come
By Michael Ellis
MONTEREY, Calif. (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F - news) Chief Executive Officer Jacques Nasser said late Saturday that plans to cut up to 5,000 jobs in North America would save $300 million to $400 million annually, but the automaker will have to take further steps to cut costs.
Nasser said Ford may cut vehicle production capacity if the U.S. economy shows no signs soon of rebounding over the next 12 to 18 months, which is the current outlook. Cutting production usually includes cutting more jobs and can go as far as closing a plant.
``This is an initial action,'' Nasser said of Friday's news of the job cuts. ``There will be other actions that we need to take in other areas of the company. It will be how can we do things more efficiently, how can we make decisions more quickly,'' he told reporters here at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, a celebration of luxury cars.
``We'll take the next three or four months to think it through, see what other actions are needed,'' he said.
Ford, the world's No. 2 automaker, said on Friday it will offer up to 5,000 white-collar employees in North America, or 10 percent of its salaried workforce, a voluntary severance package. Ford also slashed its earnings expectations for the year by more than 40 percent, and said it would take a $900 million after-tax charge, mostly to cover the job cuts, which will be achieved largely through voluntary retirements.
Nasser said the job cuts were necessary because of the weak economy, the intense competition in the industry, and the costs associated with the massive recall of Firestone tires.
``We don't see any factor that's going to restore the robustness of the economy,'' in the next 12 to 18 months, he said. ``We keep asking ourselves what will it be, what action will happen in the economy that will stimulate confidence in buying again, and we just don't see it.''
Nasser said Ford will evaluate its global operations, which includes Japan's Mazda Motor Corp. (news - web sites) (7261.T), and foreign brands Volvo, Jaguar, Land Rover and Aston Martin, to see where other cost-cutting measures might be needed. |
